Heart of the Phoenix
by XeroKitty
Summary: Yay, first fanfiction ever. waves Cloud and Tifa flag
1. Abduction

Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockheart stopped atop a small hill overlooking north Wutai. Tifa sat down beneath one of the tall pines cresting the rise, leaned back, and watched Cloud pace the length of the area. His spiked blond hair shone in the late afternoon sunlight and his glowing mako eyes looked troubled.  
"What did you want to ask me?" Tifa crossed her arms. Cloud jumped and glanced over at her.  
"I, um, just wanted to tell you something," he said nervously.  
"Well, what?" she asked. Cloud looked at her and his breath caught in his throat: her long, thick brown hair, deep hazel eyes, soft tanned skin... He sighed and licked his lips, opening his mouth to say something.  
"Hiya!" Yuffie Kisaragi dropped down from the tree beside him. Cloud glowered at her and Tifa blinked.  
"Yuffie, what are you doing here?" she asked the other girl.  
"I live here, smart one," Yuffie rolled her bright green eyes. "The million-gil question is: what are you doing here?"  
"How did you know we were up here?" Cloud demanded.  
"It's not hard to spot a blond porcupine with a sword as big as he is and a long haired, barely dressed tomboy."  
"Hey!" Tifa got quickly to her feet.  
"Watch it..." Cloud snarled through clenched teeth. Yuffie glanced at them, then laughed nervously.  
"Heh, just kidding. Can't you guys take a joke?" she backed away. Apparently not, because the two of them were advancing on her, shoulder to shoulder.  
"Did you follow us here?" Tifa raised one eyebrow suspiciously.  
"No way!" Yuffie shook her head.  
"I think you're lying," Cloud growled, taking another step forward. Yuffie stumbled over a tree root in her haste to back away.  
"I, uh, I'm going to leave now!" she cried and leapt back up into the trees.  
"Yuffie!" Tifa called after her.  
"Let her go," Cloud waved it off, returning to the top of the hill. Tifa let out a sigh, turned, and followed him. When he reached the top, Cloud looked back at her and was once more at a loss for words. He stood there gaping. Tifa looked up at him and he quickly averted his gaze to the floor. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something different about his uniform. Something very important was missing...  
"Yuffie!" Cloud growled, turning to look down on northern Wutai. The aforementioned girl darted across the courtyard and toward the Temple of the Five Gods, where her father sat in wait for her to return with Cloud's materia.  
"What about her?" Tifa asked.  
"She stole my materia, again!" Cloud cried, jumping down from the hill. He broke into a run near the bottom of the slope and heard Tifa land behind him and start to run as well. Halfway to the temple, Yuffie turned–saw Cloud giving chase–yelped, and instead broke toward southern Wutai. He and Tifa followed her down the steps and continued the pursuit.  
Yuffie ran down the streets of her village, ducking in and out of scores of people that entered and exited the shops. Cloud fell behind, being hindered by his larger size and the huge Ultima Sword. Tifa ran ahead, yelling at Yuffie as she pushed through the crowds after the other girl.  
"Yuffie! Get back here, now!"  
"Like hell I will!" the ninja thief called over her shoulder and darted out past the village gates. Tifa groaned and chased her out of Wutai. Cloud lost sight of them as they disappeared around a bend in the dirt road. He sighed and shook his head.  
"Not again..."

Tifa cut through the forest, always keeping Yuffie's darting figure on her right. As the path swung to the left, Tifa burst out of the woods and tackled her. The two girls hit the dirt, rolled, and landed hard atop one another.  
"Man!" Yuffie wailed.  
"Why...do you always...do this?" Tifa gasped. They both sat up, groaning.  
"I didn't take your materia..."   
"That's not the point!"  
"And what is the point?" a male voice broke into the conversation.  
"That you can't go around stea–" Tifa began, then cut herself off and looked up at the young man. Yuffie followed her gaze and blinked.

"Who're you?"  
"The name's Zeo; First Class SOLDIER working for the scientist, Hojo."  
"Hojo...?" Yuffie asked, puzzled. Tifa yelped and scurried backwards.  
"SOLDIER!"  
Zeo just laughed as the girls got to their feet and took their fighting stances.  
"Why are you here!" Yuffie demanded.  
"I'm looking for the best of the best," he replied. Tifa growled and Yuffie pulled out a green materia orb. Cloud ran out from the forest.  
"Tifa!" he spotted them.  
"Cloud, it's the Shin-Ra!" she called back.   
"I'll use it!" Yuffie threatened the guy with the green materia.  
He chuckled. "Do you even know which spell that is?"  
"No..." Yuffie blinked, "but I'll still use it!"  
"I think it was a mistake hunting you down," Zeo shook his head.  
"Yuffie, don't use that!" Cloud raced over to them. Yuffie didn't listen and poised for an attack. The materia glowed, then sparked violently, a huge white crack running across its surface. She stopped and studied it.  
"What's going on?" Tifa looked back at Cloud. There was a huge explosion. Yuffie screamed and flew back into Tifa. Not expecting it, Tifa hit the ground and her head slammed against the hard-packed dirt. The two girls lay in a heap on the floor. Cloud reached them and knelt beside their unconscious figures.  
"Tifa? Yuffie?"  
Neither responded. Cloud whirled around just in time to see a staff swinging toward him. It connected with the side of his head and he collapsed beside the others. Zeo chuckled, strapping his bow staff onto his back and picking up the cracked materia.  
"She tried to attack with a busted materia? Hmph. Come and get them!"  
At his command, four men in Shin-Ra uniforms appeared from the forest. Two men hoisted Cloud in between them, one gathered Yuffie up in his arms, and Zeo lifted Tifa onto his back. The other man was saying commands into a walkie-talkie.  
"Yes, just out of Wutai. Come pick us up."  
Seconds later the steady hum of a propeller sounded through the evening sky. Rushing toward the group was a large white Shin-Ra helicopter. It landed beside them, the side door swinging open. Zeo carried Tifa Lockheart inside. The men threw Cloud Strife into the chopper after them. Yuffie Kisaragi was brought in last, and the rest of the men leapt in after. The door slammed shut and the chopper rose back into the air. It circled Wutai once, then slipped past the Dai-Cho mountains and toward the small beach at the end of the island, where a continental transport was sitting in wait.  
The three were taken into the bowels of the ship where they were placed in separate cells. Each was injected with a greenish-blue fluid from a syringe, then all their weapons, materia, and armors were taken. Beside them were five other occupied cells: Barret Wallace, Vincent Valentine, Cid Highwind, Red XIII, and Cait Sith lay in the same coma-like state, stripped of their possessions as well.


	2. Break Out

The slamming of a door made Cloud wince and slowly open his eyes. Bright light pierced his vision and the world instantly started spinning. He sat up quickly and retched; thin, watery fluid hit the floor. He shuddered in revulsion. Wires and pipes tugged at his body, and he looked down at himself.  
There was a tube in his nose and another in his arm. Thin sliver wires cris-crossed over his naked body, creating a spider's web over him. He was atop a long white table, spot lights shining at him from all directions. With a grunt, he yanked the IV from his arm and slid the tube out of his nose. Then he tried to stand–which proved to be a very difficult task–and the silver wires slid off. He stumbled across the bare white room and fell to his knees just in front of a metal locker. Gasping, he grabbed its ice cold handle, his arm muscles quivering as he dragged himself to his feet. He yanked the door open and found his clothes lying on a shelf at eye level. Thankfully, he leaned against the locker and slipped the mercenary uniform on. He snapped his belt into place and realized that his materia and armor were missing. Cloud limped over to the door and turned the knob–it rattled. He tried again, but figured it to be locked from the outside. That confused him; why would he be locked in a room, naked, with an IV in his arm?   
Cloud looked around, taking note of his surroundings. No windows, one door, one locker filled with things he couldn't name, and a table. His eyes darted across the ceiling and he spotted the air vent in the right-hand corner of the room. Thinking quickly, he kicked the table, sending it sliding across the room and crashing into the far wall. He walked after it and pushed it into the corner. He climbed up, grabbed the vent slots, and yanked on them. He did this three times before it actually came loose and fell to the side. Cloud sighed and hoisted himself up into the dark pipe.  
As he crawled along, he wondered where he was and what the hell he was doing there. He couldn't remember anything when he thought about it. The farthest he could recall was being in Wutai with Tifa and Yuffie.  
He continued to move forward until he reached a vent where voices floated up to him. Two men were discussing something in hushed tones. Cloud peered down into a another white room and gasped.  
Tifa was in that room, the men talking to each other over her naked body. She had tubes in her arm and nose as well, and the same silver wires lined her figure. Cloud recognized one of the men, though he couldn't believe it: the mad Shin-Ra scientist–Hojo. He was arguing with a taller man, white-haired and green eyed, who had Cloud's Ultima Sword strapped to his back. He looked around twenty, and wore a first-class Shin-Ra SOLDIER uniform.  
"How can you just kill them!" he hissed at the scientist. "My contract said nothing about killing the innocent!"  
"But they're not innocent, Zeo," Hojo growled back. "If you don't recall, these are the people responsible for Shin-Ra's collapse."  
"But they saved us from Meteor."  
"That's precisely why I ordered you to capture them. Can you imagine artificial SOLDIERs as skilled and as powerful as these eight? We could control the world within the next year!"  
Zeo shook his head.  
"The liquid I had you inject into each one six months ago kept them in their unconscious state. It also made a genetic copy of their DNA, which has taken all this time to extract. Very soon now, the clones should be up and running. We can't have the real ones alive to discover their clone's weakness. They could defeat them easily."  
"All except for the blond one, right?"  
"That one would be hard for anyone to defeat," Hojo grinned a twisted little grin. The two men moved toward the door, which Hojo knocked on twice.  
"When shall I do it?" Zeo asked, rather reluctantly.  
"The sooner, the better," Hojo replied, and the door swung open.  
"Tonight, then."  
The door slammed shut.  
Cloud sat frozen in light of all he had just witnessed. He waited until he couldn't hear anything anymore, then slammed his feet down on the vent. It gave way and he slipped into the white room. He ran over to Tifa and shook her gently.  
"Tifa, wake up. Come on, you have to wake up!"  
She moaned and her eyes slowly fluttered open. She squinted up at him, looking quite confused for a moment, then blinked.  
"Cloud? Where–"  
He hoisted her into a sitting position then went to get her clothes from the metal locker.  
"I don't have time to explain. We have to get out of here, now."  
"Why do I feel like crap..?"  
"Just concentrate on getting dressed first," he replied, bringing her clothes over to her. She pulled the tube from her nose and winced as she looked at the one in her arm.  
"I hate needles."  
Cloud reached over and slid it out as gently as he could.  
"You'll be fine. Hurry," he said.  
She got shakily to her feet and began to pull her clothes on. Cloud shoved the table over to the vent in the corner then turned to check on her. She was hopping around unsteadily, trying to slip one of her boots onto her foot. She teetered, got it on, and stood upright. She looked back at him.  
"You can explain now."  
He motioned for her to come over to him, and lifted himself up onto the table.  
"There's not much to explain, because I don't know everything. I heard Hojo and some guy discussing it–"  
"Hojo! As in like, 'mad-Shin-Ra-scientist' Hojo!"  
"Yeah, that's him."  
"How..!"  
"Remember he told us that he had implanted himself with Jenova cells? I think they kept him alive until someone found him and helped him."  
"Oh, that's just great."  
"Listen, Tifa: Hojo is doing some kind of cloning experiment. He took our DNA to make an army of indestructible monsters– which he modeled after us."  
They were crawling through the vents, whispering back and forth to one another. When she heard the last statement, she stopped dead.  
"Like us!"  
"Yeah, and they want to get rid of the original copies tonight."  
"But...but..." Tifa stammered.  
"Look, I know it sounds stupid," Cloud shook his head, "but it's true. Now we need to find the others and get out of here."  
"They kidnaped everyone, I take it?" Tifa shook her head. "Okay, I'll go check back this way and you go on ahead. I'll see you later," she turned.  
"Tifa," he called. She glanced back at him. "Be careful."  
She smiled. "You too."

Cloud checked the room before kicking the vent open. Cid lay on the table, groaning and shaking his head.  
"Ow... Where the hell am I?"  
"Cid, you okay?"  
"That you, Kid?" he sat up slowly. Then he blinked and looked down. "...Where the fuck are my clothes!"  
"Here," Cloud pulled them out of the metal locker and tossed them at him. Cid yanked the tubes from his body and stood up shakily as he caught the bundle.  
"You mind tellin' me what in the hell's going on here? Why is there an IV in my arm? Why am I not dressed! Why did you come into the room by a vent!"  
"If I could have used the door, I would've." Cloud glanced back at Cid once the man had his pants on. "But I don't have time to explain. We need to get the others and get out of here."  
"Cloud," Cid growled as he buttoned up his jacket, "when you tell this story to your children, make sure you leave this part out."

"Now, just the animal to check on the next floor," the scientist muttered, circling the table slowly. Tifa waited until the man in the lab coat walked out of the room. Then she detached the vent and dropped down lightly. Vincent Valentine groaned and sat up, shaking his head.  
"My head..."  
Tifa crossed the room and avoided her eyes, but wound up looking somewhere she wasn't supposed to. Blushing furiously, she watched him sit up and pull the wires from his unclothed body. He saw her staring and blinked.  
"Tifa, is that you?"  
"Um, yeah," she replied. Then, clearing her throat and shaking her head, she walked over to the metal locker across from her and opened it.  
"What in the world is going on?" he asked, sliding off the table. She wordlessly tossed him his robes over her shoulder. He caught them, then looked down at himself.  
His cheeks reddened: "Um..."  
"Could you hurry up and put those on, please?" Tifa snapped. He jumped and pulled everything on. When she heard the click of the metal glove on his forearm, she turned to look at him again. He brushed his hair back, tying the bandana in place over his forehead.  
"I am not asking anything except what the hell is going on?"  
"I'll explain later–right now, we have to get out of here."  
"Where is 'here'?"  
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," she shook her head, tugging the table over to the far wall. Vincent helped her and they both climbed onto it. He hoisted himself into the vent first, then pulled Tifa up. They began to crawl through the vents, Tifa thinking about what the man in the lab coat had said. The animal on the next floor...?  
"I need you to keep going until you find an exit. I have to go get Nanaki," Tifa slipped back out of the vent.  
"Tifa, no!" Vincent hissed.  
She ignored him, running over to the door of the room and studying the frame. It was made of thick metal and locked from the outside. She fiddled with the hinges until one of the pins came loose, then worked at it with her nails and after a moment, the pin fell to the floor. She paused then bent down and unhooked the second one. Tifa pushed her shoulder against the door and it slid open enough for her to duck out into the hallway. She glanced around, taking in the situation:  
Ten doors, all lining one wall, all locked from the outside. A guard was asleep at his post just in front of the corridor. Tifa saw an elevator at the end of the hallway. She went over to the sleeping guard and glanced him over. There, on his belt, were the keys to the cells. Tifa leaned down and jangled the keys a bit. The man's brow furrowed slightly but he didn't wake up. Shaking her head, Tifa slipped the ring off his belt and went back into the hallway.


	3. Elevators and Stairs

She crept down the corridor, unlocking each of the room doors and pushing them open.  
"Hey!" Yuffie hissed from the last room. Barret swore loudly from another.  
"Tifa?" Cloud poked his head out of the third room up the hall. She shushed him, pointing to the sleeping guard. He nodded and slipped back inside the room. She ran to the elevator, saw the key-card pad mounted on the wall beside the twin doors, and rushed back to the guard. She searched through his pockets and he slowly opened his eyes.  
"What–" he tried, but Tifa punched him on the side of the jaw. His head slammed into the opposite wall and he was out again. She rolled her eyes, pulling out the master key card from his back pocket. Then she ran back to the elevator, activated the keypad, and slipped inside. Cloud, Barret, Yuffie, Vincent, Cid, and Cait Sith finally gathered in the hallway.   
"Where's Tifa?" Cloud blinked.  
"She's looking for Red XIII," Vincent told him.  
"He's not here?" Yuffie asked.  
"Apparently not," Cait Sith replied.  
"We can't stand around waitin' for her," Barret sighed. "It's best we find our weapons."  
"I know where mine is," Cloud growled, remembering the white-haired boy with Hojo.  
"Well, first thing's first: where's the materia?" Yuffie glanced around.  
"Is that all you think about?" Cid rolled his eyes.  
"She's right; some of the materia we had was one-of-a-kind," Cait Sith nodded. Yuffie grinned triumphantly at him. They thought in silence for a moment, then Vincent spoke up.  
"If this is a Shin-Ra building, the materia is usually stored in a lab in the lower basements."  
"Are you positive?" Cloud asked.  
He nodded.  
"Yeah, Vincent!" the ninja girl squealed, latching onto his arm.  
"Then we'll go down," Cloud stated. "Yuffie and Vincent will come with me."  
"Why do I have to go!" she jumped, looking up from her hold on Vincent.  
"So I can keep an eye on you," he responded. "Cid, Barret, and Cait Sith go in the second group. We'll split up on the next floor; one group will head down the stairs, the other will take the elevators."  
"Release me," Vincent stared calmly down at Yuffie. She did, brushing her hair back into place and turning to the blond mercenary.  
"I vote elevators!" she cried.  
"You sure?" Cid raised an eyebrow.

"Positive," she nodded perpetually. Everyone else shrugged. Then they slunk past the unconscious guard, down the hall, and to the elevators where Cloud, Vincent, and Yuffie slipped through the metal doors. The other three headed for the emergency staircase.

Tifa peered inside the room. It was completely black except for a slight purplish glow coming from the center. On closer inspection, the faint light was coming from a glass pillar containing Red XIII. She darted forward and tapped on the glass. The creature looked up slowly at her. His one good eye was clouded and wet, the fur around it dampened to a darker shade of red. Tifa peered in sadly at him.  
"Are you okay?"  
He just looked at her mournfully. She felt around the base of the glass, found the keypad, and slid the card through. It beeped and she punched in the code printed on the back of the card. It beeped again, and the glass suddenly parted down the middle. It slid aside with a hiss, leaving a low metal platform before her. Tifa climbed up onto it and crawled over to Red XIII.  
"Nanaki, are you all right? Please, answer me."  
He suddenly snarled and leapt upon her. Tifa yelped, falling back and hitting the tiled floor hard. She saw stars for a moment, then realized Nanaki was biting her arm and digging his claws into her shoulders.  
"Nanaki, stop! It's Tifa! Don't you recognize me!"  
The creature stopped growling and released her. He backed away uncertainly.  
"Tifa...?"  
"Yes, it's me," she replied, wincing as she sat up slowly.  
He studied her a bit longer, then leaned forward and licked the blood off of her arm.  
"I'm sorry," he nipped her affectionately.  
"You were scared, weren't you?" she whispered. He looked away again. Tifa stroked his head tenderly.  
"I was all alone again," he murmured. "Trapped and all alone."  
"You're never alone," Tifa smiled softly. He looked up at her as she stood.  
"Thank you, Tifa."  
"No problem. Now, to find the others..."  
"Have you seen them?"  
"Yeah. We were in separate rooms on the floor below. Did you hear anything any of the scientists said?"  
"No."  
"All right, it's a long story. Cloud said he'd explain all he knew when we're all together."  
"Everyone's here?"  
"Yes."  
Red started to say something, but stopped and turned to look behind them. Tifa looked back too.  
"Do you sense that?" he whispered. She shook her head.  
"What is it?" she asked.  
"It's big...and evil," he turned around fully and let out a threatening growl. From the darkness at the other end of the room came and answering growl, and two glowing orange slits appeared.  
"I think I let something else out..." Tifa stepped back. With a roar, a huge flourescent green dragon stormed into view. They took their stances, without their weapons, armor, or materia.  
"This should prove to be interesting, don't you think?" Red tried to sound convincing.  
Tifa shook her head, gulping audibly. In a corner of the room, behind the dragon, a pair of bright green eyes flared in the darkness as the monster reared to attack.

"You wanted to use the elevator, right!" Cloud shouted over the alarms. The three were huddled in the center of the elevator, the digital number display flashing wildly.  
"Stop it!" Yuffie wailed. Vincent leaned over and slammed his fist down on the panel. The digits stopped scrolling and blinked the number 15. The doors flew open. Guards were racing at them from all sides.  
"Just run!" Cloud yelled, and the three of them darted for the stairs. Gunshots rang out behind them–Yuffie screamed as a bullet caught her in the leg. Vincent stopped to help her, and a second-class SOLDIER dropped down behind him.

"Vince!" Yuffie cried. He spun back around to face the SOLDIER. Cloud kicked at him viciously and the warrior stumbled. Another round of shots echoed up the hall, but they hit the SOLDIER. The three looked toward the stairs. Cait Sith bounded forward, slamming his fists into the opponent's chest; the SOLDIER fell. Vincent helped Yuffie to her feet, and they all ran to the stairs. Barret waved at them from one floor below, his gun arm held out in front of him.  
"Looks like he found some ammo," Cloud said.  
"I'm thankful for it," Yuffie heaved a sigh.  
"Would you like to take the stairs?" Vincent raised an eyebrow.  
She groaned as she looked down at her injured leg: "Well, who said to take elevators in the first place!"  
Cloud and Vincent rolled their eyes at one another.


	4. Reclaiming Items

Tifa screamed as the dragon raked its claws across her chest. She fell to the ground, moaning in pain. Red XIII lunged at the dragon–which was four times larger than himself.  
"I'll kill you!" he snarled. Their attacks clashed and canceled one another out. The dragon roared again, closing its jaws on Red XIII. With a toss of its head it sent the animal flying across the room. He slammed into the wall, slid down to the floor and didn't move.  
"Nanaki!" Tifa screamed. Her wounds opened wider, and she groaned, tears leaking from her eyes. The dragon squealed, storming forward, ducking its head to Tifa's level. She tried to pull away but it advanced, opening its mouth to swallow her.  
Suddenly, the figure that had been watching from the darkness lunged forward with a huge sword. It raised the crystal-lined weapon above its head and sliced the dragon's neck open. With a cry, it fell over dead. Tifa blinked dazedly, staring up at the person clipping the sword onto their back.  
"Cloud...?" she whispered. The person knelt beside her, sitting her up and placing something to her lips.  
"Drink this," they whispered.  
"Who...?" Tifa tried, but they shushed her and held up the bottle to her lips again.  
"Just drink."  
Tifa started to drink what turned out to be an X- potion, but pulled her lips away from the bottle and looked up at him.  
"Wutai..." she croaked.  
"You remember?" his green eyes widened. She nodded.  
"Materia..."  
He shook his head. "Drink this, then I'll explain everything."  
Tifa hesitated, then gulped down the rest of the potion. Her wounds quickly disappeared and her strength returned.  
He helped her sit up. "My name's–"  
"Zeo," Tifa completed. The man blinked at her.  
"You remember that much!"  
"I remember enough."  
Zeo nodded then handed her something. "These yours?"  
He was holding out her Premium Heart gloves. She took them.  
"Where's my companion?"  
"I was going to help him now," Zeo stood, helping Tifa to her feet. She slipped her gloves on, glaring at him.  
"I should kill you for bringing us here."  
"I just saved you; that doesn't win your trust?"  
"Not entirely."  
Zeo grinned at her, then went to help Red XIII.  
"I suppose it's logical for you to be mad at me after that episode," he said, pulling a phoenix down out of a pouch on his belt. He rubbed the dark red feather over Nanaki's forehead and the creature opened his unscarred eye.  
"What...?"  
"Drink this," Zeo held another X-potion out to him. He sniffed at it, glanced at Tifa–who nodded–and he lapped it up. Panting heavily, the orange-red animal got shakily to his feet.  
"Who are you?" he growled weakly.  
The white-haired youth bowed, "Zeo, first-class SOLDIER at your service."  
"This is the one that kidnaped us," Tifa motioned to him.  
"You!" Red snarled, his muscles suddenly bulging as his strength rushed back into him.  
"He's going to help us," Tifa continued, then glanced at Zeo. "Right?"  
"I don't justify the killing of innocent people," he shrugged, "so, yeah. I might as well."

"Why do you have Cloud's sword, if you don't mind my asking?" Red continued to growl.  
"Who's sword?" Zeo blinked. "Hojo gave this to me as a reward for your capture."  
"That sword belongs to Cloud; the blond one with the mako eyes," Tifa explained.  
"Oh," he blinked again. "I'll give it to him when I see him. By the way, who's is this?"  
Zeo held up a silver ninja star, its center wrapped with brown leather, the four sickle blades glinting in the faded purple light.  
"Yuffie's Conformer," Red XIII answered. Zeo tucked the weapon into his belt and walked to the door.  
"If I'm correct, your friends went down to the basement to find their materias and armors. Hojo wanted to clone all of your materias, seeing you guys had some really rare ones."  
"I need my clip back," Nanaki snarled.  
"They equipped all of your weapons onto other monsters," Zeo told him. The door whooshed open, and he glanced up and down the hallway.  
"Wonderful," Tifa replied dryly.  
"Follow me," Zeo stepped out into the dark hall. She glared at his back, but followed. Red slipped out of the room behind her, and the three of them tip toed down the hall, toward the elevator. Zeo pulled a key card out from his pouch and slid it through the lock on the elevator. The doors slid open and the three of them went inside.  
"What floor are we on?" Red blinked.  
"Sixty-seventh," Zeo replied.  
"And we have to get to the basement!"  
Zeo nodded. Red XIII rolled his one yellow eye.  
"Won't other Shin-Ra employees be getting on and off this elevator?" Tifa looked at the white-haired boy. He thought about this for a moment, then nodded.  
"You two have to act as my prisoners."  
"I hate this," Red XIII growled.  
"He's right though," Tifa shrugged. Red grumbled some more, but stepped behind Zeo and lay down. Tifa put her hands together behind her back and stood closer to him.

"Here they are!" Yuffie chirped. Cloud looked down the hallway at her as she peered into the barred window. Cid glanced in over her shoulder.  
"They're in here," he confirmed.  
"Get away from the door," Cloud walked over to them.  
"Why?" Yuffie wailed.  
"Because this is our materia, not yours."  
"Aw, phooey," she pouted. Barret joined Cloud at the door, and Cait Sith, Cid, and Vincent held Yuffie back by the arms as she thrashed and complained. Barret shot the lock off the metal door and Cloud shoved it inward with his shoulder. The room opened up into a dark laboratory, lined with almost two hundred small mako-compacting incubators. Tubes and wires littered the cold marble floor, running back and forth in between the materia producers. Up at the back of the room were three large test tubes, displaying a red materia, a green materia, and a yellow materia: the three Master Materias.  
The team went around, gathering the orbs and putting them in their pockets–most of their armors and weapons were still missing. Two sets were left over: Tifa and Nanaki's. Yuffie was released on the bargain that she wouldn't take every single materia for herself...yet. Cloud gathered the two extra sets and put them in his pouch. As he did this, a creaking sound started coming from behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and was flung backward. He slammed into the wall, crying out in surprise and pain. Everyone turned to look at what had attacked him, and a large metal shape clunked into view.  
It had eight spindly wire legs and a round body lined with crystal. Atop its back was Vincent's Death Penalty, and on its underside, Cid's Venus Gospel.  
"Holy shit!" Cid blinked.  
"Lucretia..." Vincent hissed and took a battle stance.  
"Whoa...!" Yuffie leaned back to get a good look at it.  
"You alright?" Cait Sith helped Cloud to his feet. He nodded and blinked to adjust his vision. When he saw the spider-thing, he turned to Cid, Vincent, and Yuffie.  
"Can you guys handle this alone?"  
"Our materia will be enough," Vincent replied sharply.

"You go on ahead and find your girl," Cid winked at Cloud, then charged up for a summon.  
"Cait Sith, Barret, you two search for anymore weapons or armors," Cloud ordered. "I'll look for Tifa...then Hojo."  
The three of them ran out of the room. Yuffie blinked, looking puzzled.  
"Um, what am I supposed to do?"  
"Shut up and help us!" Cid snarled and disappeared; an aged man in white and gold robes appeared before the metal monster. He raised his mage staff high into the air, and a thunderbolt came from the sky, striking the creature. It shrieked and let loose a barrage of bullets from the Death Penalty. They all rolled out of the way, Cid readying to attack again.  
"Hey! I already got shot once today!" Yuffie shouted angrily, lunging forward. She threw a flying kick that dazed the creature and Cid hit it with the Ramuh summon again. Vincent closed his eyes and struck the metal spider with a Bolt3 spell. It jumped forward, jabbed the Venus Gospel, and grabbed the dark-haired man in one huge metal claw. Cid stumbled from the lance's strike and Vincent cried out as he was thrown into the air.  
"Vince!" Yuffie hollered, throwing a shield spell at him. It caught him just before he slammed into the ground and reduced the blow. However, he still shook his head dazedly as he struggled to his feet. His eyes suddenly flared, a yellow energy surrounding him.  
"I am not beat yet!" he howled, using his Limit Break to transform into the black Chaos monster.  
Cid winced next to him. "Yeesh, he's pissed."  
"Go Vincent, go!" Yuffie whooped. The black demon roared, storming forward to meet the metal contraption head-on. Cid summoned Ramuh once more, and Yuffie charged up for her All-Creation strike.  
"If it's not down after this..." Cid shook his head as he came back from the summon.  
"It'd better die!" Yuffie yelled and threw her energy blast from the planet. Vincent roared, swinging wildly at the spider-thing. Its metal frame began to shudder, and the Death Penalty clattered off the body and hit the floor, going off with one loud report.


	5. Regrouping

Tifa and Red XIII looked up at the sound of the single gunshot. Something roared, and the entire elevator shuddered violently.  
"We're going to fall!" Tifa yelped.  
"Calm down!" Zeo grabbed her arm. Shrill alarms started to ring through the sound system. A black device on Zeo's belt crackled to life.  
"Suspects heading down toward the basement area! Close off all stairwells, elevators, and hallways–"  
The elevator shuddered again and Nanaki leapt to his feet.  
"It is going to fall!"  
"Stop moving around!" the white-haired boy commanded. With a groan and a loud snap, the car dropped rapidly down the shaft. The velocity of their descent made them rise into the air. Tifa shrieked, Red XIII howled, and Zeo cursed.

Cloud whirled around as a loud alarm bell started ringing through the intercom speakers mounted on the walls. Then he heard the alert and cursed under his breath. Barret and Cait Sith jumped, then ran for the stairs. At that moment, an explosion came from the elevator doors to Cloud's right. He ran over and felt the silver metal, which was hot to the touch. He pulled away quickly and looked up at the number display above them. Twenty-nine. Faintly, he heard a girl scream.  
"Tifa!" he hollered through the metal. There was no answer. With a frustrated cry, Cloud slammed his fists against the doors and wriggled his fingers through the crack in between them, slowly prying them apart. A rush of flame licked at him and he flinched. The elevator car sat at the bottom of the chute, mangled and spewing fire. He scanned the wreckage wildly, searching for some sign of her.  
She screamed again. He looked up through the smoke and darkness and saw three figures hanging from a snapped elevator cable. It was the white-haired kid, gripping Red XIII by one hind leg, Tifa hanging onto the animal's neck.  
"Are you all right!" Nanaki whimpered.  
"I...hate...Shin-Ra..." Tifa gasped.  
"You're fine; calm down," the boy called down to her.  
"Tifa!" Cloud shouted. He saw her look down at him; she squinted.  
"Who's that?" the boy asked.

"Cloud!" Tifa cried back, overjoyed.  
"Are you okay!" Cloud hollered up at her.  
"Yeah! What about you! Are the others all right!"  
"Yes! We found the materias!"  
"Cloud, I hate to be a pest, but...get us down!" Red howled.  
"I've got you, I said," the boy stated with a little impatience.  
"Cloud!" Tifa continued. "Can you find out what floor we're on!"  
"Twenty-nine!" he replied.  
"Get up here and help us, then!" Red snarled.  
"I can't very well hold on forever, you know," the boy grunted.  
"Okay, you guys hang tight; I'll get you!"  
Cloud dashed from the mouth of the elevator and entered the emergency staircase. Barret and Cait Sith were several floors up already. He looked around hurriedly; he had to get to the twenty-ninth floor somehow. From above, he heard Cait Sith meowing and Barret cursing. Gunshots rang down the dark halls and echoed off the metal walls. There was another jolting explosion from below, and the walls, floor, and ceiling began to shake violently. Cloud paused on the ninth story, looking around warily. Something burst up through the cement floor from below. Yuffie shrieked as she shot up toward him on the back of a huge red, four-winged dragon. Vincent lay unconscious in her arms and Cid sat behind her, gripping her waist tightly. They bulldozed their way up the stairwell, past Barret and Cait Sith battling on the twentieth floor, and up toward the roof.   
"Was that the others!" Barret yelled down at Cloud.  
"Yeah!" he shouted back. "You guys get up there too! I'll get Tifa and Red!"  
"'Kay!"  
Cait Sith hissed, and his voice sounding far away and hollow. A red light filled the stairs and a scream almost deafened Cloud as the black Bahamut dragon appeared in the air above him. He saw Cait Sith and Barret leap on; the dragon roared, and they took off after Neo Bahamut. Cloud closed his eyes and concentrated. The air around him grew hot and started to glimmer red. Something within him shrieked, and it strained against his conscious body. Wings burst forth, fire encircled him, talons stretched out and grasped the iron railing.

Zeo grunted, and they slipped a few more inches. Tifa began to pray under her breath. Red XIII whimpered, bowing his head and licking Tifa's arm. The white-haired boy twitched as his fingers began to lose their grip on the thick metal cable. The jagged end wires ripped at the flesh of his palm, and he squeezed his eyes shut.  
"I can't...hold on much...longer!" he grunted, losing more of his grip.  
"Cloud!" Tifa shrieked.  
The wall on their left suddenly exploded outward and fire reached up to brush at their legs. A huge red, gold, and orange swanlike head poked through the hole and stared up at them with intense amber eyes. It entered the shaft and rose up to meet the people hanging from the cable. Cloud reached over and slipped an arm around Tifa. She blinked up at him in amazement.  
"You came!" Nanaki leapt onto the Phoenix's back behind Cloud. He put both arms around Tifa and smiled.  
"Told you I would," he replied. Zeo dropped down behind Red XIII and looked at the blond ex-SOLDIER.  
"Thanks."  
"I didn't do it for you," he replied coldly.  
"Cloud," Tifa shook her head, "he saved our lives."  
"She's telling the truth," Red nodded to him. Cloud glanced at him critically.  
"Then I guess I owe you my thanks, but I'll just take my sword back instead," he growled. Zeo wordlessly handed the Ultima Sword back. Cloud hefted it, then strapped it to his back.  
"Where's everyone else?" Tifa blinked.  
"Upstairs," Zeo answered before Cloud could open his mouth. The boys exchanged heated glares again.  
"Calm down, both of you," Nanaki snarled. "This isn't the way to behave right now."  
"Believe it or not," Tifa added, "you two are on the same side. So, put whatever grudge you developed to the side, and let's work together."  
"Just don't get in my way," Cloud turned away from the other boy's piercing green-eyed gaze. The Phoenix flapped its flaming wings hard and they shot up toward the seventieth floor of the Shin-Ra building.  
"By the way," Red XIII called back, "what's this I'm hearing about clones?"

"I heard that too," Cloud glanced back at Zeo, who shook his head and looked away from Tifa's inquiring stare.  
"I'll explain as soon as we catch up to the others."

Yuffie hugged her Conformer when Zeo handed it to her.  
"Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Oh, how I've missed my beautiful shurinkan!" she gave one of the blades a big kiss. Vincent leaned against the wall at the farthest corner of the room, twirling his Death Penalty nonchalantly. Barret fished the Limited Moon clip from his back pocket and tossed it to his orange-red companion. Cid lit a cigarette he had found in his back pocket while waiting around for Cloud and the others. He inhaled the cancer stick deeply, then hacked and slammed a fist against his chest.  
"Six months without a smoke–I can barely take it!"  
Tifa and Red XIII slid off the Phoenix's back and watched as Cloud dispelled his summon. He sighed, then looked around at everyone.  
"All accounted for?" he called.  
"Yeah," Cid waved.  
"Let's get to it!" Barret stomped his foot.  
"Present!" Yuffie called.  
"Here!" Cait Sith bounced up and down.  
"I agree with Barret's proposal to move," Vincent said.  
"Still here," Tifa blinked at him.  
"Can we get going?" Nanaki growled.  
Cloud put a hand on his Ultima Sword and looked at Zeo.  
"If you're going to be in danger, don't follow."  
"Bull," Zeo sneered. "You couldn't find your way to Hojo's lab if there were signs pointing the way there."  
Cloud spat angrily at him. Tifa put a hand on Cloud's arm to calm him down, and Zeo lost his hard glare.  
"If you two keep fighting like this, we'll just go on alone," she said. Cloud turned to Zeo again. They glared at each other for a moment, then Cloud stepped back to let him stand at the head of the group. The white-haired boy motioned for everyone to follow and they headed into the darkness of the hallway.


	6. Enter the Clones

"Everything is falling into place," Hojo cackled, shuffling across the cold stone floor. He glanced over his shoulder at the opposite wall, where something sat in a glowing green liquid. Eight test tubes about seven feet tall lined the walls, each containing a faint human-like figure. He heard shouts echoing up the hallway and shook his head, moving around to the control panel at the head of the room. He flipped a switch and one of the test tubes hissed. The glass slid apart and the figure collapsed onto the cold ground in a pool of green liquid. Its eyes glowed lethally up at Hojo, who cackled again and grinned down at the shape on the floor.  
"...Master."  
Hojo laughed even harder, flipping up the other seven switches. Each capsule spilled its contents onto the floor, and eight shapes clustered together against the green light emitting from the walls. The mad scientist's breaths quickened and he giggled insanely, clapping his hands like a child who is ready to play a game.  
"Let's see what you can do!"

Cloud and Zeo burst into the room.  
"Hojo!" Cloud yelled up to the man on the platform.  
Red XIII stopped beside them, gasping slightly for breath.  
"Couldn't find your way?" he panted. "Anyone could follow this idiot's laughter!"  
The rest of the group arrived, but Hojo was too intent on something in the center of his lab to give the others much more than a glance.  
"Zeo, you brought them to me. Good work."  
"What!" everyone turned to look at the white-haired youth. He flushed, taking a step back.  
"I did not bring them to you; I brought them here to kill you!" he stammered out.  
"Say what you want," Hojo finally turned his twisted face to them.  
"Zeo, is he telling the truth?" Tifa asked softly.  
"No!" he cried.

"I knew it," Cloud snarled, pulling out the Ultima Sword.  
"Wait–" Zeo tried, but then something shot out and grabbed him by the throat. He gasped, then he was tossed back over the person's shoulder.  
"Zeo!" Tifa ran to him. The others took a step back–no one had been in the room other than Hojo, so what had that been? As if to answer the unspoken question, the person stepped into their view.  
It was Vincent Valentine.  
"Vince!" Yuffie gaped.  
"I'm right here," he replied. The others turned to look at him. He hadn't moved. They looked back at the other Vincent, whom was grinning from beneath his hood. He wore a red suit and a black cape, a silver plaited claw on his right arm.  
"He's completely opposite," Nanaki growled.  
"A clone," Cid gulped.  
Another figure stepped beside the imposter: Yuffie Kisaragi.  
"Hey!" she yelped.  
Her clone wore a red tank top and blue jean shorts, a black arm shield connected to her right shoulder. Her shurinkan was wrapped with black ribbon. "Yuffie" grinned at them smugly. Red XIII appeared; he had blood red fur and a diamond on his tail. His spiked hair had changed to black. Barret Wallace came into sight next, still as tall and dark as ever, with a black leather outfit, black boots, and a bronze-plaited gun on his left arm. Next was Cid Highwind, in a red jacket, white shirt, and tan pants. His own Venus Gospel was silver and blue. Behind him was Cait Sith, dark pink instead of the original cotton candy hue. The cat perched on its head was a white and beige calico cat with a silver megaphone.  
"They're exactly like us!" Cait Sith wailed.  
"He did it..." Zeo gasped as Tifa helped him limp over to them. "Hojo's released the clones."  
"But you haven't seen my two greatest creations! Behold!" the evil scientist cackled, throwing a switch. Lights flooded the huge laboratory, making the group shield their eyes from the glare. Two figures walked through the glare and stood before the pack of clones. Cloud looked up at them first, and his jaw dropped.  
"Holy shit..." he whispered. Tifa blindly reached out for him and grabbed his hand. She squeezed it tightly. Cloud looked over at her. She was still supporting Zeo, but looked like she was about to collapse herself. She chewed convulsively on her bottom lip, her eyes wide in fright.  
The first clone was an exact duplicate of Tifa Lockheart: the black skirt, white tank top, leather gloves and boots, and long dark hair. Only her eyes had changed to a shining a lethal green. The second clone was Cloud Strife–another mirror image. From the top of his blond spikes, to the dark-blue mercenary uniform, to the armor, everything was exactly the same. Only this Cloud wore a dark, maniacal grin, and his eyes shone an evil green as well.  
Hojo giggled like a small child. "Isn't this fun!"  
"Fun!" Yuffie gulped, staring at the clones in disbelief.  
"That's hardly the word I would use," Vincent grumbled.  
"I...am really...good-looking!" Cid gulped, trying to make a joke out of it.  
"Cid, now's not the time..." Cloud said nervously.  
Tifa backed away, dragging Zeo with her. He pulled away and limped forward.  
"Zeo, what are you doing!" she hissed.  
"Hojo, I'm going to stop you," Zeo grunted, gathering energy. He began to glow bright red, and the floor beneath their feet began to shake.  
"He's summoning! We have to go, now!" Cloud cried.  
"What 'bout him!" Barret motioned to Zeo. Sparks of energy had begun to flicker up around him.  
"Run!" he hissed, his eyes turning blood red. "Run, now!"  
"Zeo?" Tifa blinked.  
"Come on, Tifa!" Red XIII pulled on her skirt. She continued to watch the white-haired boy in wonder. Something in the other reality shrieked and started to come forth.  
"Time to go!" Yuffie ran from the room. Vincent wordlessly followed. Then went Barret, Cait Sith, and Cid.  
"Move it!" Cloud grabbed Tifa about the waist and shoved her forward. She stumbled into a run, he and Nanaki following behind her.

Out in the corridor Vincent was pulling out a summons of his own. The six-winged silver dragon shrieked loudly, appearing before them.  
"Get on!" he ordered, leaping onto BahamutZERO's back. Yuffie scrambled up to sit in front of him and Cloud and Tifa climbed on as well. Cid quickly summoned NeoBahamut and he, Barret, Nanaki, and Cait Sith climbed onto the red dragon's back. Both creatures roared and flapped their tremendous wings, making the entire Shin-Ra building tremble. The walls and ceiling started falling in around them, and they made their way through the debris and up to the night sky. A low, yellow moon shone at them through the clear night, illuminating the two dragons speeding away from the large building. Tifa kept looking back over her shoulder. Cloud looked too.  
"He'll be fine, Tifa," he assured. She opened her mouth to reply when she saw something that made her eyes grow large. Cloud focused on the sky above the receding building and saw a huge animal with three pairs of wings, each having a tremendous span. It screamed, a beam of yellow light falling from the moon and illuminating the Shin-Ra building. Red electricity gathered around it, glowing brighter and brighter, until the building itself imploded. The flare of light made Tifa and Cloud squint as they tried to see the large animal again. However, they had gone too far and the battlefield was lost behind the horizon.  
"Zeo..." Tifa whispered.


	7. PhoenixZERO

"So, what were those things, anyhow?" Yuffie turned from gazing out of the Inn window.  
"Clones," Cloud sighed, "of us."  
"I take it that's not a good thing," Cid winced as he tried to smoke another cigarette.  
"And do they have the same abilities as we do, or what?" Cait Sith asked.  
Cloud shook his head. "You're asking me things I don't know–I couldn't gather much from the conversation between Hojo and that kid."  
Beside him, Tifa let out a sound of disapproval. Cloud frowned back at her.  
"He was good to help us, now that I think of it," Nanaki growled, curling up beside the fireplace at the right-hand side of the room.  
"Too bad we couldn't do anything to help him," Barret crossed his arms. Tifa let out another angry noise. Several of them turned to look at her this time.  
She abruptly stood up. "I'm leaving."  
"Why!" everyone cried in shock.  
"I'm not just going to sit here and think of ways I could have helped him," she strode toward the door. Cloud leapt up and grabbed her wrist, and she turned to glare at him.  
"Going back there right now is suicide," he reasoned. "I would like to help him–we all would–but I think we should be sure those clones aren't out for our blood yet."  
"So we're going to sit here and wait to die!" she snapped back.  
"No, but–" he couldn't retort fast enough; she pulled away from him and opened the door.  
"I'll be back."  
They all watched her march toward the Highwind, silent. Red XIII started forward, but Cloud held out an arm and walked forward instead. He reached her as she led their golden chocobo–Kinto–out onto the field. Tifa secured the saddle and reins on Kinto's back and head, preparing to mount him.  
"You can't go alone, you know," he said. She adjusted the final straps on the large gold bird.  
"Kinto's fast–he can outrun anything," she answered.  
"What about when you're not riding him? You have to get off him to look for the guy."  
"His name is Zeo," Tifa snapped, "and he saved my life not once, or twice, but three times. I'm not going to wait for him to just magically appear on the doorstep!"  
Cloud watched her face turn red, then pink, and she bowed her head.  
"Tifa–"  
"Cloud, I'm sorry but...I have to," she said softly. Cloud studied her posture and tone of voice. Something suddenly struck him and he took a step back in uncertainty.  
"You don't...like this guy, do you?"  
She snapped her gaze back to his. "No! Are you crazy! I..."  
Her voice died in her throat. She merely shook her head and looked up at him. He blinked in confusion, then reached out to touch her face. She jumped onto Kinto's back and quickly dug her heels into his side, making him wark in protest. She and the chocobo raced toward Mt. Nibel. Cloud watched them go until the last feather of the golden tail disappeared around a bend in the trail. He turned back to the others, who had watched the entire spectacle from the doorway. Cursing underneath his breath, he returned to the Inn.

Tifa Lockheart kicked aside a twisted Shin-Ra logo and made a face.  
"Good for that," she looked up from her search. Way back at the start of the markings of ground zero, she saw Kinto's feathers gleaming in the dawn light. She had been searching most of the night, and dawn was coming fast. At least she'd have more light; of course, she would be easier to spot during the daytime.  
Coming across the remains of a mako capsule, she stopped again and called out softly:  
"Zeo? Can you hear me? It's Tifa!"  
Her eyes darted around quickly, looking for anything out of the ordinary. To her left she spotted the crumbled foundation of the cursed Shin-Ra building. She wiped the sweat from her brow, her eyebrows knitting together in frustration.  
"Well, this is pointless. Cloud was right..." she glanced back at the glowing horizon. Suddenly she cupped her hands around her mouth and screamed: "Zeo! Zeo, can you hear me! Zeo!"  
She listened and only heard the hollow echo of her own voice. Shaking her head, she turned to run back to Kinto when something behind her moved. She snapped back around, taking her fighting stance.  
"Who's there!"  
A dull clatter sounded from her left this time. She turned in that direction and saw a figure rise from the debris. It groaned inhumanly, and Tifa took an uncertain step back.  
"Who...who's–"  
"Tifa," the person whispered. Her eyes widened and she raced forward.  
"Zeo!"  
The white-haired boy collapsed. She caught him before he hit the ground and lowered him gently, kneeling beside him.  
"Are you okay?"  
"You...you got away..." he gasped, staring up at her dazedly.  
"All thanks to you," she bit her lip, blinking back tears. Zeo's eyes suddenly came into focus, and the green orbs peered up at her in wonder.  
"W-What happened! ...when...why...!"  
"There's no time to explain; we have to go back now."  
"The clones...?"  
"I don't know where they are. Did you defeat them all?"  
He shook his head. "The clones...they–"  
A heap of twisted metal beside them exploded upward. Tifa yelped and held Zeo closer. Together they watched a shadow rise from the rubble and dust. Then another. Nine figures stood before them, bright green eyes shining lethally with mako. Hojo's laugh echoed over the ruins of the old Shin-Ra building, and he stepped forward.  
"Fools!" he cackled. "You think a mere energy blast can defeat me and my clones! They will help me create an army of invincible bio-SOLDIERs, with which I shall rule the world!"  
"Oh, get over yourself," Tifa snorted, drawing Zeo to his feet. They turned away from Hojo and the clones and she helped him limp away. A figure stepped out in front of them, and she looked up at Cloud Strife, almost dropping Zeo.  
"C-Cloud...?"  
"It's not him," Zeo whispered to her. "That's one of Hojo's creations."  
"Why does it look so much like him!"  
"The clones have your DNA genetically fused into their own cells. Especially this clone and yours."  
"What!" Tifa gaped at him.  
"Tifa," the Cloud-clone called, extending his hand to her. She stared at his offer critically, then pushed past him, leading the other boy away.  
"We don't have time for this."  
His sword was suddenly out and lined against the side of her head. She froze, her brown eyes wide. Zeo growled and tensed beside her.  
"Remove...the sword..." he snarled. 'Cloud' chuckled deeply, playing the glowing blade of the synthesized Ultima Sword against her neck.

"What if I slit her from here," he pressed the tip of the sword to her temple, "to here?" he trailed it down to her neck. Tifa whimpered, glancing around as the other seven clones surrounded her and the wounded boy. Zeo tried to step in front of her, but he almost fell to his knees. Tifa hung onto him, glancing around for an escape. She suddenly remembered Kinto and let out a shrill whistle. The clones all took a step back, then the Yuffie-imposter was bowled over as the golden chocobo dove into their midst. With a heave, Tifa threw Zeo onto the golden bird's back and slapped its tail-end hard.  
"Go to Cloud!"  
The animal let out a startled wark and shot into the field. Tifa watched Zeo sit up and hurl something in her direction. With a sharp clink, a red-gold materia orb landed at her feet.  
"Use it!" he called back as the chocobo carried him over a rise. She scooped it up quickly and studied it–she had never seen anything like this. The interior was deep, dark red, encircled by a honey-gold glow. A shape was twisting in its depths, curled up and waiting to strike.  
"Game's up, girlie!" the Barret-clone rushed at her. Tifa's eyes glinted and she rushed forward to meet the attack: she gave him a Beat Rush to the stomach and face; struck a startled Cait Sith-double with her Somersault; downed Red XIII's copy with a Water Kick; slammed Vincent's clone with Meteodrive; knocked 'Yuffie' back with her Dolphin Blow; hit the Cid-look-alike with the Meteor Strike; finally pulling back her fist and feeding her own clone the Final Heaven.  
They all fell away from her wrath, and she turned her eyes to 'Cloud', not noticing the strip of blood which suddenly trailed down her face.  
"Not bad, for a human," he muttered. Tifa stood, brandishing the strange summoning materia. She glared at the duplicate.  
"You're not Cloud–you never will be!" she yelled, casting the summon.  
A strange, haunting tune filled the air. Darkness overcame the land and a faint red-gold light formed before her, straight from her chest. Tifa held it in her arms, feeling its warmth and reassurance–the creature was a familiar one. The ball of energy expanded, blinding all except the summoner. A shriek issued from its depths and out burst the Phoenix, flames shooting from its wings and mane. But this Phoenix was different: behind its flaming wings was a pair of white and golden-tipped ones. Then, behind those were a smaller pair of gold and red-webbed demon-like wings. It's golden eyes lay on the clones and it crooned its strange song. Red lightning sparked across the wasteland, encircling the blond–golden bands of energy held him in place. He grunted, trying to break free. With another shriek, a beam of light parted the darkness from above and slammed into him.  
Tifa collapsed from the heat of the explosion and the force of her drained will. Her eyes rolled back into her head as she fell atop the body of this strange bird, and with a few more haunting notes of its song, it rose into the air and flew away. 'Cloud' stood and brushed himself off. His green mako eyes glittered.  
"You'll pay for that, girl."  
Hojo began to laugh, and the clones turned to him obediently.  
"Come, my magnificent warriors!" he chirped. "We must head for another location."  
All nine disappeared.


	8. Ryan

Cloud Strife sat anxiously by the window, peering out at the horizon–searching for a sign of Tifa Lockheart or Kinto, their golden chocobo. Someone grasped his shoulder and he turned to look up at Vincent Valentine. The tall, dark man was staring at Cloud with a look of complete and painful understanding.  
"Come away from the window–you haven't left it since she went off."  
"I know this can't be healthy for you!" Yuffie Kisaragi poked her head around Vincent to blink at Cloud. The young mercenary sadly lowered his eyes and turned back to the window.  
"I want her back safe."  
Vincent and Yuffie looked at one another, then he put his arm around the younger girl and led her away, leaving Cloud to his watch. He sat there through supper and on through the night. Just as the faint glow of dawn lit the horizon, he spotted a shape racing toward the town. He leapt from his chair and dashed out into the open, panic, worry, and exhaustion all but forgotten. The shape was Kinto, and someone was slumped over him. Cloud ran to meet the bird and it let out an important-sounding wark, lowering its body so he could take its burden. Everyone else raced outside to see Cloud lift Zeo's body from the ground.

"Where's Tifa?" he asked it. The golden bird made a distressed sound in its throat. Then a shriek issued from above them and everyone looked up. A huge red and gold Phoenix with three different pairs of large wings touched down in front of the group and lay Tifa Lockheart's figure on the ground before them. Cloud handed Zeo over to Cid and ran to the huge firebird. As he knelt to hold her, the Phoenix spread its glowing wings and sang a slow, enchanting melody. The seven listened in awe, watching golden spirals of light encircle Zeo, then Tifa. Zeo sat up slowly and Tifa stirred.  
"Where is she...?" Zeo stared around. Cloud lifted her into his arms and stood.  
"Barret, Cid, take him inside," he ordered. "Vincent, you carry Tifa to her room. Yuffie, tend to Kinto."  
"Right," Barret pulled Zeo up and leaned him between Cid and his left side. They dragged him into the Inn, Vincent following them and carrying Tifa. Red XIII scurried after the cloaked man, Cait Sith following at the rear. Yuffie took the chocobo's reins and led it toward the stables, shaking her head.  
"Man, this is some weird stuff..."  
Cloud turned to the Phoenix.  
"You saved her," he said. "I thank you. Where did you come from?"  
The bird let out a few more notes of its willowy song.  
"Phoenix...ZERO?" Cloud stared in confusion.  
It shrieked, the shrill noise wavering into the notes of the song again. It rose up above his head and exploded in a brilliant flash of red-gold light. Cloud shielded his eyes from the glare, but when he looked back up, an orb was there in the Phoenix's place. The red-gold sphere lowered to chest level and Cloud reached out and grabbed it. With an amber light, the orb faded to a normal reddish materia glow, and he slipped it into his belt. A strange warmth enveloped him, and the last notes of the Phoenix Song rung in his ears.

Cloud Strife sat in the armchair beside Tifa Lockheart's bed. She lay sleeping deeply under his protective gaze. He thought about the red-gold orb and the huge firebird. The threat of the clones also pushed into his mind every so often. His head was bowed as he continued to think, even as Tifa finally awoke, sitting up and looking around. She spotted him and blinked.  
"Cloud?"  
He lifted his eyes to her. "Feeling better?"  
"A little," she shifted, dangling her legs over the side of the bed.  
"Lay down; you're not strong enough yet."  
"I'm fine," she smiled weakly. She stood, stumbled, and sat back down. Cloud got up and crossed over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders and pushing her down onto the pillows.  
"Really?" he raised an eyebrow.  
"Okay, so I'm not," she sighed. He lifted the comforter and covered her up to her shoulders, tucking her in gently.  
"Sleep, okay?"  
"But where's Zeo? Is he alright?"  
Cloud stood and went to the door, before answering: "He's fine."  
"Cloud...?"  
"I'll look in on you later," he said. "Get some more sleep."  
He left. Tifa stared at the door for a few moments, then turned away and instead looked out the large window across from her bed.

Cloud went down the hall and pulled open the third door on his left. There, Cait Sith was attending to the now ex-SOLDIER. Zeo looked away as Cloud stepped into the room and motioned for Cait Sith to leave. The stuffed mog-cat creature did, looking confused. Cloud crossed over to the bed, pulling his Ultima Sword from his back. Zeo watched him incredulously, his light green eyes gleaming. Cloud held the sword up over him, his own blue eyes hard. They glared at one another for a few moments, then he leaned the sword against the wall beside the bed. Zeo was taken aback. Cloud sat next to him, crossing his arms and staring down at his feet.  
"She's fine. She'll be up and about around the same time as you."  
"Why are you here?" Zeo asked weakly.  
Cloud shook his head: "She asked me to look in on you."  
"She did?" his eyes widened. Cloud nodded.  
"I, uh, wanted to thank you," he said.  
"What for?" Zeo blinked.  
"For saving us. Saving her," he emphasized.

"No problem," the other boy replied uncertainly. Cloud's gaze moved up from the floor and he glanced sideways at the white-haired boy.  
"I'm sorry," he added.  
"Sorry...?" Zeo was confused.  
"I didn't trust you in the beginning; I've always been biased against those from the Shin-Ra; Cait Sith can tell you. But, after you saved my friends, I started to trust you," Cloud looked at him. "Does that answer your questions?"  
"Yes," he nodded. Cloud lowered his eyes and Zeo sat up. "Did she really ask about me?" he pressed.  
"Yeah," Cloud replied. "She did go to save you, you know."  
Zeo thought of this silently. Cloud stood, picked up his sword, and clipped it to his back once more. With a curt nod, he started to leave.  
"Cloud, isn't it?" Zeo called.  
He stopped: "Yeah, that's me."  
"Um, thanks."  
Cloud grinned slightly and reached for the door handle. He jerked his hand back as a scream abruptly rang through the door, then yanked it open and lurched into the hallway.  
"What's going on!"  
"It's coming from Tifa's room!" Cid ran past him, Red XIII at his heels.  
"Cloud, do you–" Zeo started.  
"You stay here! If it's those clones, you're in no condition to fight!" Cloud cut him off and ran after the others. Barret and Vincent were already inside, blocking Tifa from a figure at the other end of the room.  
"What is it!" Yuffie raced in with Cait Sith.  
"It's one of them clone-guys!" Barret snarled, raising his gun arm. They looked over at the shadow who laughed and took shape. Vincent Valentine's clone stood there, grinning evilly.  
"I was given the name Ryan from my master, who has also commanded me to capture the woman," he said.  
"Oh, no you won't!" Cid shouted back, pulling out his Venus Gospel lance.  
"Yuffie, help Tifa out of here!" Cloud ordered.  
"What! Why me!" she cried defensively.  
"Because I said so!" Cloud shot back. Yuffie jumped then ran over to help Tifa out of bed. The Vincent-clone–Ryan–lunged at her, and Cloud blocked him with his sword.  
"Move it, Yuffie!" Red XIII growled, lunging to attack. Yuffie hoisted Tifa out of the bed, put her arms around her waist, and helped her limp out of the room. Barret and Vincent both fired at the clone as he jumped at the girls again. One of the bullets caught him  
in the leg. He stumbled, pulling out his silver Death Penalty and firing back. They dodged out of the way, Cait Sith coming from the right and slamming his fists into Ryan's chest. The Vincent-clone fell to the floor, dropping his gun.


	9. A Vision

Yuffie dragged Tifa from the room and down the hall. She kicked the third door from the left open and pulled her inside. Zeo jumped and sat up quickly.  
"What is it! What's happening!"  
"One of those stupid clones came for Tifa," Yuffie lowered her onto the bed beside him. Tifa groaned, closing her eyes and breathing shallowly. Zeo looked up at the door, listening to the sounds of the fight.

Nanaki tackled Ryan. They rolled around on the floor for a moment and the clone threw the orange-red creature away, reaching for his gun. Vincent fired his own weapon and sent it clattering away from the copy's reach. Cloud ran forward, slicing across his chest. Ryan jumped to his feet, narrowly avoiding the huge sword. He backed away and glanced down at the shallow gash on his front.  
"That was foolish..." he muttered, casting a spell. The Trine attack hit them hard, and all fell to the floor. Cloud got to one knee, clutching a wound in his side.  
"Take this!" he spat, running forward.

Cloud's sword began to glow and he brought it forward with a hard lunge. Then he sliced upward, across, down, forward, hitting the clone twenty different times. Cloud finally jumped high overhead–his Ultima Sword glaring a harsh white–and threw the blade down, cutting Ryan deeply. He backed away, panting and Vincent's duplicate fell to one knee, gasping in pain. They stood back and watched as he slowly got to his feet. He grunted, then looked up at them all with his eerie green eyes and began to laugh.  
"If you believe that can defeat me, try again!" he cried. Everyone crouched to attack again, but suddenly it got dark. They all looked around and something screamed loudly. Ryan looked up to see BahamutZERO's attack racing toward him. He could only widen his eyes in shock and then it struck him, making the entire building tremble. The explosion shattered all the windows and blew all the doors off their hinges. They all waited for the summon to die out, then finally looked up at the caster.  
"Is everyone alright?" Zeo called weakly.  
"Huh!" Cid blinked.  
Red XIII suddenly yipped: "No, everyone isn't alright!"  
The real Vincent was crouched, hunched over and trembling. Cloud knelt beside him and looked him over.  
"Vincent, are you okay?"  
He slowly looked up at Cloud, and the boy blinked as he peered into Vincent's ashen face.  
"These clones..." the man grunted, getting to his feet. He choked and a mouthful of blood hit the floor. Cid and Barret winced, Red flattened his ears back, and Cait Sith meowed worriedly. Vincent limped toward Zeo. Cloud held out a hand to help him but the man shook his head and came face to face with the mysterious boy.  
"That's right," Zeo nodded. "These clones are you. Though you will not die when they do, you will feel pain."  
"For how long?" Cid asked.  
"A short while–give him an hour or so," he replied.  
Cloud shook his head, turned, and left the room. Zeo watched him go.

Yuffie Kisaragi jumped up the moment he entered the room.  
"What happened! Did you get him!" she cried.  
Cloud Strife nodded: "At a price–Vincent's not doing so well."  
"Why not!" Yuffie shrieked.  
"Apparently these clones hold some sort of bond with the originals. When they're defeated, we feel it, to some extent." "He won't die, will he!"  
Cloud looked over at Tifa who was sitting up and staring at him with wide, scared eyes.  
"I...don't know."  
"Vincent!" the ninja-thief leapt up and raced out of the room. Cloud watched her go and he felt Tifa take his hand. He looked to her, and her eyes were filled with tears.

"Zeo will be helping them," Hojo paced back and forth in front of the stone pillar. His strange mako eyes flickered over the seven shadows kneeling in the darkness around the center shrine. "Damien! Arina!"  
The Cloud and Tifa-clones stood, saluting the mad scientist. "Yes, Master."  
"I need you to make sure this city is secure–go patrol the area. Destroy all that is not necessary."  
They bowed and disappeared. Hojo turned to the others.  
"If it would please you, Master," Cid's clone stood up, "I'll be the next to go capture the woman."  
"Yes, Marione," Hojo looked at him, "perhaps you will succeed where Ryan failed. But I will not tolerate another failure."  
"Forgive my questioning, Master," Yuffie's double spoke up, "but why is that woman so important? Why were Arina and Damien created differently anyway?"  
"In due time you shall figure this out, Katrina," the scientist glanced at her. "For now, Marione, you and Kenya will go back to the other continent and capture Tifa Lockheart."  
"With all due respect, Master–" the Red XIII-clone growled.  
"You will accompany Marione," Hojo said softly. "You will both bring Tifa here to the City of Ancients, and one of you must eliminate that problem."  
"Problem?" Barret's clone looked up.  
"Were you not paying attention, Waylon!" Hojo snapped. "Zeo must be eliminated."  
Waylon bowed and said nothing else. Marione sneered at the dark man, turned and left the inner city, Kenya following reluctantly at his heels. Hojo giggled and turned away from the others, clasping his hands. Two pairs of glowing green slits shone from the darkness of the passageway leading to the outer city. The sharp sound of metal against glass screeched loudly through the darkness, as if a sword were being drawn. The eyes disappeared.

Cloud lay in his bed, staring out the open window into the night. Too many things were on his mind: the clones, Tifa, Hojo, Tifa, his friends, Tifa... There was no way he could possibly get to sleep at this rate. He continued to stare up at the crescent moon in the dark sky for some time until a noise by the door made him jump and look over in surprise. Tifa stood in the doorway, blushing and looking down at the floor.  
"Sorry if I startled you."  
"No," he shook his head to clear it, "that's okay. What is it?"  
"I had this really weird dream...and I don't want to go back to sleep all by myself," she blushed furiously. Cloud blinked at her for a moment, then threw the quilt off of himself and climbed out of bed. He made his way over to her and smiled, taking her hand.  
"Then you can stay with me."  
She smiled bashfully at him, but nodded. He led her back over to his bed and threw himself down onto the mattress. Tifa giggled and lay down beside him. Cloud turned his body to face her and pulled the sheets up to cover them. Tifa slipped into his arms, laying her head against his chest and closing her eyes. He slowly stroked her hair back, staring into her face for a long time. Her brown eyes slowly drifted open. She peered up at him and Cloud's breath caught in his throat. Tifa shook her head and looked away.  
"I dreamt about Aeris."  
"Aeris?" Cloud blinked.  
"She was in the City of the Ancients, where we found her right before Sephiroth..."  
Cloud nodded. "Yeah."  
"Well," Tifa continued, "just like then, a figure dropped down from the eaves above us and rammed a sword through her...a different sword."  
"What do you mean?"  
"It wasn't Sephiroth this time," she said. "It was you."


	10. Marione and Kenya

Zeo opened the door of his bedroom and peered down the hall. Everyone was asleep–Barret was snoring loudly somewhere to his right.  
"I have to get out of here," he said, staring down the corridor.

Cloud's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.  
"You had this huge green and gold sword in your hand," Tifa avoided his gaze, "and you were wearing gold armor. And your eyes...were green."

Zeo crept up the hall, looking at the last door of the walkway which stood slightly ajar. He faintly heard Tifa's voice, then a low male's:  
"Tifa..."

"Tifa..." Cloud's blue eyes flickered. He bowed his head: "It was my clone."  
They lay in silence for a few moments, then Tifa spoke up again.  
"Aeris did say one thing before she died."  
"What?"  
"...'Ultimate Sacrifice'."

Zeo shook his head, passing the doorway and creeping down the stairs.  
"I shouldn't have stayed here for so long...I've put her in danger." He crossed the dark lobby, heedless of the single yellow eye that watched him from the lounge area. "Goodbye, Tifa."

Cloud looked away from Tifa.  
"What was that?"  
"What was what?" she blinked.  
"I heard a door close," he got up, moving to the room door and peering out into the hallway. Tifa joined him. Red XIII climbed up the stairs, looking over his shoulder at the first floor landing.  
"That was strange..." he grumbled.  
"What was?" Cloud asked.  
"Ahh!" Nanaki jumped and looked up at them.

"What's wrong, Nanaki?" Tifa whispered.  
"That kid–Zeo–I just saw him go out the front door."  
Cloud and Tifa glanced at one another.  
"Did he say anything?" Cloud asked the creature.  
Red nodded: "He said something about putting someone in danger, and then he said goodbye to Tifa just as he walked out."  
"He's going back to fight the clones," Tifa lowered her eyes to the floor.  
"Idiot," Cloud shook his head.

Zeo looked back at the receding Inn once before running up the mountain trail. Sudden footsteps on the path told him something was now in pursuit. He pulled out his bow staff and stopped quickly, almost making the figure slam into him. It leapt over his head, unsheathing a long, gold and blue lance.  
"Marione..." he murmured.  
"Pleased to see you remember who I am," Cid's clone hissed, his green mako eyes flashing. Zeo twirled the bow staff and charged the clone. Marione charged too, knocking the staff away and slicing at him with the gold blade. Zeo winced, rasing his hands up and calling upon the great six-winged BahamutZERO. The power beam struck Marione and made the ground around them quake. Zeo shielded his eyes from the harsh glare. There was a pause and all of a sudden Cid's figure leapt toward him, drawing back a powered-up fist.  
"I am not as easy as Ryan!"  
"Zeo!" Tifa shouted, knocking him out of the way. Marione stumbled and turned to see what had happened when Cloud's huge Ultima Sword found its way deep into his chest. He blinked, looking up at the blond.  
"Surprise," Cloud snarled, twisting the blade inward. A line of blood seeped out from the corner of Marione's mouth and he pulled away, the thick blade sliding out of him with a sickening noise. He stumbled back, leaning against his own Venus Gospel and looked again to Tifa and Zeo who were both getting to their feet.  
"Kenya, you just gonna stand there and watch!" he growled. Cloud, Tifa, and Zeo turned to look at the dark red animal which padded up from behind the wounded clone and glared.  
"You seemed to be handling the situation quite well."  
"Get the girl! I'll hold them off!"  
With a snarl, Red XIII's clone sprang onto Tifa and Zeo, knocking the boy aside. Tifa yelped as Kenya grabbed her wrist in his teeth and threw her to te ground. He stood over her growling loudly and baring his fangs.  
"Tifa!" Cloud ran to help her, but Marione knocked him aside. The mercenary scrambled back just as the clone dove at him, spear extended. Zeo swung around and knocked Kenya on the back of the head. The creature threw its head up and roared–more in anger than pain. Tifa slid out from under the enraged animal, cradling her wounded wrist in her other hand. Zeo picked her up and nudged her toward the trail.  
"Run and get help!"  
She hesitated, looking at Cloud and Marione. "But I can–"  
"Tifa!" Red XIII howled. She looked back to see Nanaki dart past her and slam his duplicate to the ground. Almost at once, they got back up and lunged at each other.  
"Tifa, go back!" Cloud grunted, throwing Marione away. Cid's clone stumbled, then abandoned his fight and instead dove for the girl.  
"She's coming with us!"  
Cait Sith came from their left and smashed a fist into the clone's face. Marione fell aside, groaning in pain. Red XIII and Kenya stood as still as statues, glaring heatedly at one another.  
"Cait Sith!" Tifa blinked as the stuffed mog stood protectively before her.  
"What? I'm a cat–I have excellent hearing," he smiled, then focused his attention on Marione. The clone got to his feet, coughing up a few spatters of blood.  
"You will so pay for that," he spat.  
"You leave her alone!" Cait Sith meowed wildly, swelling in size. A bright flash of light surrounded the pinkish animal and he curled his fists up, getting ready to throw...dice.  
"Huh?" Tifa blinked. "This is new!"

Cait Sith threw the white cubes high into the air, making everyone look up. He created a spell in his paws and held it until it began to hum. The dice fell back to the ground, landing on the numbers four and six. He hissed and threw the ball of energy up into the air next. It glinted, bore down on Cid's clone, and exploded upon impact. The spirit of the Grim Reaper rose from the light, his scythe slung over one bony shoulder, his toothy grin flickering eerily. With a powerful swing, Marione fell dead and the attack vanished. Everyone turned to look at Cait Sith, who blushed and danced around a bit.  
"Roulette–like it?"  
"That'll come in handy," Cloud blinked.  
"Hey, wait! Come back here!" Nanaki howled. The others turned to see the imposter creature rush up the mountain trail. Tifa clenched the fist of her wounded arm and ran after him.  
"Tifa!" Zeo cried.  
"I've got him!" she hollered back, rushing up after the red animal.  
They all watched as she disappeared around a bend after Kenya and shook their heads. Cloud groaned and sat on the cold rock beside the still figure of Marione. He lay his sword to the side and looked at the body.  
"Well, that's–"  
He cut himself off. Red noticed the abrupt silence, and turned to Cloud.  
"What?"  
Cait Sith looked down to where he was and made a face: "Eww!"  
"Is that blood!" Nanaki sniffed at the corpse delicately. Cloud got down on one knee beside Marione's corpse and put a hand in the dark liquid staining the mountain trail. Zeo looked from over his shoulder as well.  
"Zeo," Cloud turned to him, "how real are these clones?"  
"Real enough," Cait Sith retorted.  
"Almost exactly the same," Zeo answered.  
"Why, 'almost'?" Cloud asked.  
"Because they've been genetically programmed to thrive off mako energy," the white-haired boy replied.  
"Just like SOLDIERs..." Cloud mumbled.  
"Think you understand it, Cloud?" Nanaki nudged his leg.  
"Yeah," the blond responded, standing up. "They need mako energy to survive. Take away the mako...and they die."

"Why are you chasing me!" Kenya growled.  
"Because you have the answers I need!" Tifa gasped back. With a snarl, he broke from the path and leapt into the heart of the mountain range. She stopped and watched his ascent for a few seconds, then ran around to the caves and the bridge which led up to the old Mako Reactor.  
Kenya dodged past a few shadows on his right and looked back to see if the girl was still chasing him. He couldn't see her, but he could smell the sweat and blood on her skin. His one green eye darted around quickly, searching for her. She leapt from one of the forgotten paths on his left and tackled him. They tumbled through the dirt and rocks, Tifa landing sprawled atop him. Kenya growled, panting for breath as she held herself up with her arms, gasping.  
"I don't want to hurt you..."  
He snarled and twisted out from beneath her, crouching to attack. She held up her hands defenselessly, never taking her eyes from his face. Kenya pounced on her, making her head slam into the hard-packed dirt. She cried out but didn't move to retaliate. The creature sniffed her for a few more seconds, then moved off of her and turned away.  
"Hojo sent us to bring you back."  
"Back where?" she groaned, sitting up and rubbing her head.  
"Where the last Ancient sacrificed themselves to Meteor."  
"Aeris?"  
"The city where the Cetra dwelt–the key to the Promise Land."  
"The City of Ancients was home to the Cetra," Tifa thought aloud. "But why would Hojo be there?"  
"I can tell you no more. I must return before I die here."  
"Are you wounded?"  
Kenya looked back at her, his one good eye roving over her figure to her face. It showed genuine concern. He grinned half-heartedly.  
"We are one in the same. Those which fight for good, become evil. But those who were neutral, remain so."  
"'One in the same'? I still don't get that," she blinked.

"You no longer have to worry about me," Kenya assured. "However, there are some who still hunt you. Return to the City of the Ancients, and there you shall find all your answers."  
With a final glance at Tifa, Kenya nodded and bounded up the mountain pass. She watched him go.  
"Tifa!" Cloud hollered. She got up and turned to see him and Zeo running up the trail to reach her. She smiled, walking back down to meet them.  
"Where did it go! Are you hurt!" Zeo yelped.  
"Are you alright?" Cloud panted.  
Tifa shook her head, looking up to where the creature had disappeared into the night.  
"Cloud, Zeo...we need to have a talk."


	11. Confessions

"This is all my fault," Zeo shook his head.  
"This isn't anyone's fault," Tifa replied, swinging her legs back and forth as she sat perched on a table. Nanaki was curled up by the fireplace staring into the flames. Cid lay in the bed by the window, groaning in pain as Vincent and Yuffie tended to him.  
"You'll be fine," Yuffie assured him.  
"The pains will soon pass–trust me," Vincent murmured, wiping a cloth over Cid's soaking brow. The other man just moaned something about hurting to the point of agony, then rolled over onto his side.  
"Red's clone told Tifa that the answers we need are in the City of the Ancients," Cloud announced.  
"So that's where we need to go," Barret stomped his foot.  
"But it's not that easy," Cait Sith shook his head.  
"We all need to improve our skills before we even think of heading out anywhere," Cloud continued. "The only reason we defeated Cid's guy, Marione, is because Cait Sith developed a new skill. That's what we all need to do."  
Tifa inclined her head to one side. "Are you saying we should go out and train some more?"  
"Most definitely," the blond nodded. "As soon as Cid feels he can go on, we'll split into three teams. One can train on each continent, and we'll meet back here."  
"Sounds like a plan," Yuffie walked over from the bed.  
Cloud turned to Zeo: "We'll handle the clones–you can go your own way."  
"You need all the help you can get," the white-haired boy said. "I'll go in a training group too."  
"Then how are we picking teams?"  
"I can do a reading!" Cait Sith raised one huge paw eagerly.  
"The last time you did a reading, I wound up in the hospital," Cloud glared at him. Cait Sith laughed nervously, putting his hand down.  
"How 'bout we draw lots?" Barret grumbled from the wall.  
"My team goes to Wutai!" Yuffie stated.  
"I'll cut them," Tifa rolled her eyes, got up, and left the room.

Cloud Strife lowered his sword and let out a sigh as the last enemy fell dead. Cid Highwind nodded firmly, lighting a cigarette and inhaling the smoke deeply. Cait Sith yawned, stretched, and sat back on the dirt trail.  
"Can we camp out now? We've been doing this all day!" the cat-mog wailed.  
"Can you wait until we reach those caves over there?" Cloud pointed to a ridge just above them–where the entrance to a set of caves lay. Cait Sith wailed miserably and tottered to his feet. Cid grunted and breathed in some more of the noxious fumes.  
"I don't like the look of those caves; we haven't been there before, have we?"  
"Nope," Cloud shook his head. "So, there might be some monsters we missed or something."  
"Oh, that's just great!" Cait Sith rolled his eyes, starting up after Cloud on the mountain path. Cid had one more puff of the cancer stick, then tossed it aside and followed them.

Vincent Valentine glanced around before leaping into the coverage of trees above them. Tifa halted Kinto, and she and Zeo looked up into the branches at the cloak-wearing figure.  
"See anything?" Tifa called.  
"The coast is clear–we can spend the night," Vincent replied. With a grateful sigh, Tifa slid off the golden chocobo's back and dropped to the grass, sitting against the trunk of the tree Vincent had disappeared into. Zeo sat beside her as Vincent settled into the nook of a branch. Kinto warked and trotted deeper into the forest to munch on some grass. Tifa snuggled against the trunk and slowly opened her eyes, looking up at the thick tangled canopy.

"Zeo?"  
"Yes, Tifa?" he looked over to her.  
She glanced at him: "Do you think we have a chance of defeating the clones?"  
Zeo sighed, leaning back against the trunk and gazing up into the foliage with her. There was a long silence, Vincent snoring gently from above them. He turned back to her, placing his bow staff on the grass.  
"I couldn't tell you."  
Tifa's eyes saddened and she blinked slowly.  
"I'm going to tell you a story, Zeo."  
He sat up attentively. "Go ahead."  
"Once, there was a young girl," Tifa started after a pause, "and she had a lot of friends. But there was this one boy that they all used to pick on. He went far away, promising the girl he would make it into SOLDIER and then come back for her. The years passed and they never spoke again. The girl grew, her friends grew, and deep in her heart she knew that the little boy that had left was growing too."  
"Why are you telling me this?" Zeo asked.  
"I don't know," Tifa smiled weakly. "But this is kind of a special story–it doesn't even have an ending yet."  
Kinto warked and continued eating.  
"Keep on then."  
She nodded. "The girl had finally grown into a young woman, but the boy had never returned. She kept watch for him, read the papers, but his face never appeared. She waited for years...and one day she saw a troop of SOLDIERs marching up the hill toward her hometown. She ran to meet them, hoping to see the boy from her past. Instead she saw two Shin-Ra guards and two mercenaries coming up the path. Her heart sank, but she couldn't let it bother her. The SOLDIERs wanted a tour of the old Mako Reactor in the center of the mountains. She took them. Halfway there, there was a bad accident. One of the Shin-Ra guards was lost in a fall and the survivors had to take the long and dangerous way to the reactor. After all of that, the two mercenaries still went inside."  
There was a pause; Zeo stared attentively at her.  
"Tifa?"  
"She wanted to follow them inside," Tifa continued quickly, "but the remaining guard stopped her. There was a scream and one of the mercenaries ran back out. He told them his comrade had gone crazy at the sight of the horrible monsters inside the reactor's core. They ran back to town. The other mercenary came back that night and went down into the basement of the ancient Shin-Ra Mansion. He found something there...something that drove him completely insane."  
Zeo put a hand on her shoulder. Tifa was taking in deep, ragged gasps, and looked as if she were about to cry: "Stop, you're–"  
"I need to finish this."  
He pulled away and watched her sadly: "Go on, then."  
She shuddered as the chocobo ducked behind the tree, still eating.  
"One night, the town awoke to fire. It was everywhere, and the crazed mercenary made his way back up into the mountains, to the Mako Reactor. The young woman ran after him only to see him murder her father. She screamed and ran to kill the man, and he sliced her open–wounding her very badly. She lay there at the base of the stairs, bleeding and crying and wishing that she could see the boy from her past one last time. And then, the remaining guard appeared over her and removed his helmet. He picked her up and lay her against the wall, drew his sword, and looked down at her. Something passed between them; something gentle and deep. Just as she realized who he really was, she lost her thoughts and knew no more."  
Zeo looked into Tifa's round face and saw she had tears rolling down her crimson cheeks. He touched her face and gently forced her to turn to him.  
"That was you?"  
Tifa sniffled: "Me and Cloud."  
"He left you alone for all those years," Zeo shook his head, snarling in disgust. Tifa blinked, sitting up and shaking her head.  
"Cloud was only trying to protect me. It was me who ignored him for all those years–"  
"But that's still no way to treat the person you love."  
"Zeo..."  
"Tifa, I love you."


	12. Katrina and Quindon

Tifa's eyes widened and she blinked away her tears.  
"What?" she gasped.  
"I love you–more than he does, I think."  
She shook her head quickly, leaping to her feet. "No! Cloud does...he..."  
Zeo stood as well, grabbing her waist and pulling her close.  
"Tifa, face it: he never loved you."  
The tears reappeared in her eyes: "He came back. Cloud does care for me–he came back!"  
"And you came back for me; do you care for me as well?"  
Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth to try and say something. Zeo grabbed her face in his hands and pressed his mouth to hers. She made a strangled cry in her throat, then pulled away from him.  
"Zeo!"  
He stood there, his arms held out to her.  
"Stay with me, Tifa–I can love you like he never did."  
Crying, Tifa turned and ran in the other direction. Zeo started after her but Kinto grabbed a mouthful of his hair and yanked him backward, ruffling his feathers angrily.  
"Let go, stupid bird!" he thrashed.  
Vincent dropped down from the tree and grabbed Zeo's arms. Kinto warked and released him.  
"I knew you were up to something," the long-haired man growled.  
"Let me go! We have to go after her!" Zeo grunted, straining to be released.  
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you?" Vincent tightened his grip on the white-haired boy. Suddenly, Tifa shrieked. They both looked up and saw two shadows looming over her.  
"Tifa!" Zeo screamed. Vincent released him and they both rushed over to her. Kinto let out another wark and ran off.

"I'm home!" Yuffie Kisaragi threw her arms out, standing before the entrance to the village of Wutai. Red XIII looked it over skeptically.  
"It's a bunch of huts," he growled.  
"And yours is a bunch of rocks! So what!" Yuffie retorted.  
"That's enough, both of yeh," Barret Wallace pushed past the two of them and entered Wutai. Yuffie ran after him and Red followed, looking up at the distant mountains of Dai-Cho.   
"This is where we first met!" Yuffie ran about in circles. "That's where I first stole all your materia!" Barret and Nanaki face-faulted. "That's the place I found that Shield Materia! And there's where I stole all of Cloud's materia for father! Father!"  
She raced eagerly toward the Temple of the Five Gods in Northern Wutai.  
"Why couldn't she have wound up with Cloud or Vincent?" Red XIII growled, laying down in the shade of the temple. Barret shrugged and wandered toward the path leading to the Dai-Cho Mountains. He stared up through the knot of scrawny trees and boulders, a distracted look on his face.  
"Father! I brought more materia!" Red heard Yuffie holler, and he shook his head.  
"I'm going to tear off her arm and smack her with it."  
"Yeah," Barret said absently.  
"Are you alright?" Red inclined his head to stare at Barret with his one yellow eye.  
"I feel...weird," the gunman responded, placing his hand on the silver barrel.  
"Weird, how?"  
"Like somethin's calling me up there...just up an' hollerin' at me..."  
"What's it saying?"  
"...'Come find them'."  
"Find what?" Nanaki stood and Yuffie came flying out of the temple.  
"Come on! I have to check on my stash!" she bounded up the trail.  
"Where you goin'!" Barret called.  
"Dai-Cho hideout!" she yelled back, disappearing around a bend in the road.  
Nanaki and Barret shrugged then raced after her.

Cloud Strife looked back into the hollow of the cave at the two sleeping figures of his friends. Cid had his head on Cait Sith's huge pink stomach, and rose up and down as the stuffed mog breathed heavily. The older man sucked in a large breath, then let it out in a long whistle. Cloud chuckled and turned his gaze back up into the night sky where several clusters of stars twinkled absently. He found himself thinking again of Tifa and her strange behavior lately. What did it mean? Did she really have feelings for that stupid white-haired kid?  
"Tifa..." he whispered. The cold gaze of the stars gave him no consolation. He sighed, closing his eyes so sleep could try and overtake him. Cloud sat there for what seemed like hours, seeing Tifa over and over again in his mind's eye; the way she smiled at him, the way her body fit perfectly with his, her small, beautiful face staring up at him solemnly...  
A hand had wrapped around his mouth and an arm pressed across his waist.  
His eyes shot open and he was staring up into two glowing green slits. He made a startled cry in his throat, trying to pull away from whomever was holding him.  
"Moves a lot, don' he?" a gruff male voice asked from behind him.  
"Don't slip, Waylon. He's stronger than he looks."  
Cloud stopped moving. He knew these voices... He looked up again at the bright green eyes that withdrew as the person stood. She grinned down at him, suddenly illuminated in the moonlight.  
"We wouldn't want Damien upset at us for letting him slip away," Tifa Lockheart smiled. Cloud screamed through the tight hand around his mouth.  
"If you say so, Arina," the guy–Waylon–grunted, hauling Cloud to his feet. Cloud realized that the arm around his waist didn't have another hand, but a barrel of a gun: Barret and Tifa's clones.

Tifa blinked in surprise now that she had gotten over her scare.  
"Yuffie!"  
The black-haired girl merely smiled and pulled out her shurinkan.  
"What's going on!" Zeo ran up. Vincent came up on Tifa's other side, and they watched as a second figure appeared from behind Yuffie Kisaragi–Cait Sith.  
"Cait Sith?" Vincent blinked.  
"Katrina and Quindon, to you!" Yuffie's duplicate shouted, getting into her fighting stance.  
"We're here for Tifa Lockheart!" the Cait Sith-clone bounced up and down on the balls of his dark pink feet.  
"Run, Tifa," Vincent lifted the barrel of the golden Death Penalty.  
"But I can fight!" she protested.  
"Not right now!" Zeo yelled. Tifa flinched and took a step back. "Zeo...Vincent–"  
Quindon pounced on her. She threw him away, rolling to her feet and looking up.  
"Go!" Vincent cried, firing at Yuffie's copy. She darted out of the way and slashed her synthesized Conformer at him.  
"Run, dammit!" Zeo yelled. Tifa shook her head, then turned and started to run away. She got several steps deeper into the forest, smacking into something as she glanced back at the fight over her shoulder. She let out a startled cry and looked up into the handsome face of Cloud Strife.  
"Cloud!"  
"The name's Damien, human," the blond snarled, stepping toward her. She backed away hastily.  
"You...you're a–"  
"A clone, that's right," he smiled evilly. "So don't try anything. Come with me, or your friends die."  
Tifa gasped and turned to run back.  
"Vincent!"  
She saw him turn, but then felt Damien slide his arms around her, pinning her to him. His hand was over her mouth, closing tighter and tighter.  
"I told you not to try and start anything." Tifa attempted to kick him, but he locked one of his legs behind her and she was stuck. "Now I want you to watch closely, girl. Watch us eliminate your friends as we destroyed our own master."  
Tifa looked up in horror as he spoke the words, watching Zeo and Vincent battle Katrina and Quindon.

Yuffie Kisaragi ran to her "Treasure Room" when they entered the hideout she had nestled in the gully between two of the Dai-Cho mountains. Red XIII curled up by the entrance to nap. Barret Wallace wandered deeper into the cave. He looked around, past the barrier walls of fire and through the rock tunnels, feeling as if he was searching for something. Yuffie came back to see only Red XIII and panicked.  
"Where's Barret!"  
Red snorted as he rose out of sleep. "Yuffie, shut up."  
"Where's Barret!" she repeated.  
"He isn't here?" the animal looked around.  
"I wouldn't be asking you this question if he was!" she cried. Then she cupped her hands over her mouth and yelled: "Barret, it isn't safe around here!"  
Deeper inside the cave, Barret turned as he heard the faint echo of Yuffie's shouts.  
"Wha' the heck's that materia-chick goin' on 'bout now?"  
He turned the corner and came upon a dark, sleeping figure. He paused; looked beyond it, to the bright blue and gold chest which lay nestled there. Barret stood silently and debated whether or not he should kill the sleeping creature, then decided the pros outweighed the cons. He raised his gun arm and shot the creature dead center of the forehead.  
Back at the entrance, Red leapt to his feet as a huge roar rocked the cave. Yuffie wailed in dismay, running into the tunnels.  
"What's going on!" Nanaki chased after her.  
Yuffie gulped: "Barret just ran into the Elemental Keeper–guardian of the lost treasure of Wutai!"

Cid Highwind awoke to muffled yelling. He opened one eye and froze, not daring to move. Two people were dragging Cloud Strife into the dark recesses of the cave as he shouted and flailed.  
"He screams like a lil' girl!" the larger figure, holding Cloud, grunted. "Arina, shu' him up!"  
"My pleasure," the second person sighed. There was a loud thump, and Cloud let out one last whimper.  
"Wha' bout those two there?"  
"We have to get him back to the city. We'll come for them later."  
Cid waited until they had disappeared into the darkness, then prodded Cait Sith.  
"Cait Sith, wake up!" he hissed.  
"Is it morning already?" the black cat wailed, rubbing his eyes.  
"Shh!" Cid looked around. "Listen up; something's happened."  
"What? Where's Cloud?" the cat sat up, sounding alert.  
"Some people took him."  
"The clones?"  
"That's what I was thinking."  
"So what should we do?"  
"What do you mean, 'what should we do'?" Cid glared at him "We're going to have to save him!"  
"I was hoping you had another alternative," Cait Sith pouted and got to his feet. The two of them rushed into the cave after Cloud, Waylon, and Arina.


	13. Captured

Katrina was working Vincent over, and Zeo and Quindon were glaring at one another, both severely wounded. Tifa watched helplessly as 'Cloud' held her back from the fight. Vincent fired the gun again but it clicked.  
"Out of bullets?" Yuffie's clone asked slyly.  
"I'll kill you without the gun," Vincent growled, tossing the Death Penalty away and gathering magic for a spell. Katrina grinned then leapt up and Vincent followed her figure with his eyes. She landed behind him with a grunt and Cait Sith's duplicate suddenly threw Zeo at her. The white-haired boy tripped over the crouched girl, dropping his weapon as Vincent turned and cast the spell. Katrina rolled away, letting Zeo take the full force of the Fire3 spell. He screamed in pain.  
Tifa made a strangled cry in her throat. Damien laughed, lowering his lips to her ear.  
"You humans are all the same–slow and stupid."  
Tifa growled, abruptly throwing herself backward into his waist. Not expecting this, Damien stumbled and released Tifa so he could balance himself. She ran toward Zeo and Vincent, screaming.  
"Zeo! Vincent! They're crazy! They killed Hojo!"  
"What!" they both looked up at her voice. Tifa ran faster, shivering as a dark shadow suddenly passed over her head. When she glanced up, it was gone. Zeo gave a scream and Tifa shot her gaze back to the battlefield. She stopped dead.

"I told you, Tifa," Damien smiled cruelly, lifting Zeo up by his neck.  
"Let him go!" she shrieked.  
He chuckled, shaking his head: "I told you humans were slow...now I'll prove they're stupid."  
Vincent cast a Bolt3 spell at Damien. It neutralized harmlessly against his silver plate armor, which sparked and then dulled. Damien glanced at Vincent and the red-cloaked man choked on a sudden gush of blood that had welled up in his throat. Katrina and Quindon stepped aside and watched silently.  
Tifa screamed as Vincent fell to his knees, clutching at his neck as it swelled to almost twice its normal size. Blood dribbled from his mouth in a dark stream. His eyes bulged out of their sockets as he struggled to breathe.  
"Vincent, no!" Tifa wailed, gathering energy for a cure spell. There was a crunch and Zeo screamed in pain again. Tifa looked over to see Damien pulling something from the small of Zeo's back. It was long and curved, jagged protrusions running along its sides. Damien yanked and Zeo fell to the floor, groaning incoherently. Tifa lost her concentration as she recognized the dripping thing in his hand. She fell to her knees as Vincent's body finally collapsed. Tears flooded her eyes and she crawled over to Damien's feet and lifted Zeo's head onto hr lap.  
"I'm sorry..." she whispered, wincing as she looked at the gaping hole in his back. "I never got a chance to tell you how I really felt..."  
Damien tossed the mangled spinal chord aside and looked at Tifa, knelt in dismay.  
"Aww...so touching; I think I'm getting a toothache," he snickered. She glared up at him. He reached down and grabbed a fistful of her hair, dragging her to her feet. The other two clones circled them, and she glanced into each of their grinning faces.  
"I'm going to kill each one of you," she snarled. Quindon blinked, and Katrina threw back her head and laughed.  
"You've got to be joking!" she cried, gasping for breath in between fits of giggles. Damien raised an amused eyebrow and suddenly released Tifa. She stumbled to her knees, yelping in surprise and pain.  
"I'd love to see this. Come on, human, give us your best shot," he smiled wickedly. Yuffie's clone broke into another round of giggles and the beige and dark pink cat-creature held a paw over its grinning mouth.  
"What is she going to do? Cry us to death?"  
With this, Katrina let out a scream of laughter and fell onto her back, kicking her feet and gasping for breath. Cloud's double merely shook his head, grinning his evil, demonic grin.  
"Come on, girl. I'm giving you a chance to carry out that interesting 'threat' of yours."  
Tifa Lockheart stood, wiping her tears away with a swipe of her arm. She looked down at Zeo's torn body and shuddered, then over at Vincent Valentine's still figure and winced. She slowly raised her gaze to the three smug clones. Her eyes began to shine deep gold, and the fists at her sides clenched so tightly that the gloves started to tear. Around her suddenly appeared a white flare of power so bright, they had to shield their eyes.  
"Wh-What's this light!" Katrina cried, shrinking behind Quindon.  
Tifa screamed, throwing her head back and extending her arms out in front of her. A pink ball of energy formed in between her hands, radiating white beams of power. It grew larger, engulfing her figure and the ground around her. All of the sudden, a pink beam shot from her aura and enclosed the three clones in light.  
"What's she–!" Quindon tried.  
They were all slammed with a wave of power and stumbled. The air around them grew hot and electric, pulsing as something from Tifa's body rushed toward them. Cait Sith's clone meowed shrilly, and Yuffie Kisaragi's double screamed and tried to run.  
The explosion was so large and bright, the entire continent was suddenly lit up like day.

"Barret!" Yuffie wailed, racing into the chamber. Barret grunted in response, casting a Quake3 spell on the large figure. It stood on four thick triple-jointed legs and had a huge, armor-covered body. Barret's gun arm wasn't having much luck. She rushed into the fight, hurling her Conformer at its head. The Elemental Keeper roared, turning on her and she poised for her next assault. Red XIII came from behind her and swung his claws at the monster's underbelly, dealing a good amount of damage. He leapt back to crouch beside the other two.  
"I don' need yer help, so ge' outta here," Barret Wallace growled, unleashing an Enemy Skill–Shadow Flare.  
"Like hell you don't!" Yuffie shot back, gathering red energy in her hands. She disappeared and NeoBahamut took her place.  
"How stupid can you possibly be?" Nanaki growled, searching for an opening to its underside again.  
"Shu'up, dog," Barret retorted.

Red snorted then dove for the Keeper again, tearing at its throat with his fangs. Yuffie returned from her summon spell, glaring at Barret.  
"When we defeat this, we'll have a talk later."  
She abruptly winced and fell to one knee, coughing up a great deal of blood.  
"Yuffie!" Red turned to check on her and got smacked with an Ice3 attack.  
"I...I think...it's those clones again..." she grunted, trying to get up. Her body trembled involuntarily as more blood spilled from her mouth and nose. Her face became deathly pale. Red XIII backed up to her side.  
"Take a potion." He glanced at her. "Take an elixir."  
She nodded, gulping in slow, deep breaths as she pulled the small vial of special medicine from her belt. Barret continued to fight the Elemental creature.

They watched as the two clones threw Cloud Strife's unconscious body into the bed of a truck.  
"We have to help him!" Cait Sith hissed softly. Cid Highwind shook his head, watching Tifa's figure hop into the back also.  
"We're no match for these guys–it's a mission to defeat just one of the bastards!" his eyes narrowed. "And that copy of Tifa...she's different."  
"No she's not," the cat blinked.  
"Not like that; she's strange. I don't know how to explain it...stronger?"  
Waylon climbed into the driver's seat of the blue truck with the faded Shin-Ra logo on its side. The engine roared through the darkness of the tunnel mouth and the red glare of the tail lights washed over the rock walls. Cid and Cait Sith ducked lower behind the cluster of boulders, waiting anxiously as they listened to the truck pull out of the cave. They peeked back out to see them racing up the mountain trail and heading north.  
"Cloud..." Cait Sith's ears drooped.  
Cid growled and slammed his fist on the rock in front of him: "Bloody #&!"  
Suddenly Cait Sith wailed and fell back, writhing and twisting on the floor. Cid dropped down beside him and flinched as crackles of electricity ran across the pink stuffed mog's body.  
"Cait Sith! Yo, Sith!" Cid cried anxiously. The black cat atop the creature shrieked in pain, a fine spray of blood spewing up into the air from its mouth. Cid watched in terror, not knowing what else to do. The sparks of energy slowly died out and Cait Sith let out a tiny mewling noise.  
"You okay, Sith?" Cid tried to sit him up.  
"It's dead..." the black cat shuddered, climbing off the mog's head and onto Cid's arm. The man couldn't help but flinch in revulsion–it was covered from nose to tail with blood.  
"You sure?" he averted his eyes to the still figure of the machine.  
"The body's spent..." the cat groaned. "Number Three is probably...on its way right now."  
"What happened to you?" Cid asked. Cait Sith curled up and closed his eyes painfully.  
"My clone must have met...a terrible fate."  
"You'll be fine; don't worry," the blond pilot stood, holding the mangled animal in his arms.  
"We need to go back...call the others on the PHS...tell them...Midgar..."  
Then he shuddered and was still. Cid stopped and looked down at the cat.  
"Sith! Aw, &#..."  
He exited the tunnel and blinked as the moonlight temporarily obscured his vision. As he began to pick his way over the side, a pinkish figure caught his eye someway down the path. Cait Sith prototype number three stood at the end of the trail leading to the plains, waving at him. Cid closed his eyes, then knelt and placed his friend's body on top of a brightly-lit rock face. He touched the fur of the cat's cheek for half a moment, then stood and continued down the dirt road toward the replacement.  
"This is truly screwed up...we can't take much more of this..."


	14. Limits and Weapons

Vincent Valentine looked up at the fading night, blinking his eyes slowly. Cloud's golden chocobo was cawing softly and yanking on a few strands of his black hair.

"What happened? Tifa!" he stood abruptly, staring around. The area around them–which had been a deep, tropical forest–was now a barren, empty field. He looked around, and on the ground on his left and saw the dead figure of the soldier, Zeo. He also saw that the boy's spinal chord had been ripped painfully from his body. Vincent winced and backed away; his foot kicked something. He looked down and spotted one of Tifa's Premium Heart gloves. Vincent bent over and scooped it up, a rejuvenating feeling spreading from his hand and over his body. It had been she whom had brought him back to life, that much he was sure of. But who else had survived?  
Kinto made a distressed noise and took the glove out of his hands, chewing on it affectionately. The PHS device on his hip crackled and Cid Highwind's panicked voice cried out from the speaker.  
"Vince! Yo, Vince, answer me! Tifa! Zeo!"  
Vincent unhooked it from his belt and raised it to his mouth: "Cid? It's Vincent."  
"Vince! Oh, thank Christ I got a hold of ya! Listen, were you fighting Sith's clone?"  
"Yes, why?"  
"Cause ya killed the real one, moron!" he hollered over the speaker.  
"I didn't kill him. I think it was Tifa–but now the clones have her," Vincent replied, and Kinto warked.  
"Her too! Right before the cat kicked it, Cloud was hauled off by the Barret and Tifa wannabe's."  
"Tifa said the clones killed Hojo."  
"For real!" Cid cried.  
"This is getting extremely serious," Vincent sighed. "We have to regroup."  
"My thoughts exactly! Come to Midgar–I think it's closer to you anyhow."  
"You're in Midgar?"  
"Heading there now with Cait Sith number three."  
The voice on the PHS suddenly changed:  
"Vincent? It's Cait Sith! Some really bad stuff is happening! You'd better get over to Midgar now!"  
"Is the other kid with you?" Cid's voice returned to the speaker.  
"No–they killed him too."  
"Then Tifa's–!"  
"No. She brought me back to life right before they took her."  
"...this is getting too weird for me. See you in Midgar, Vince."  
"Bye!" the cat yelled from the background, and the PHS turned off. Vincent shook his head and attached the device back to his belt.  
"Why do I stay with this group of nutcases?" he rolled his eyes and turned to Kinto. The golden bird immediately knelt and lowered his neck so Vincent could climb on. He guided the bird to what he hoped was north– and towards Midgar–then urged it into a run.

Red XIII snarled as the Keeper's tail came whipping toward him and Yuffie. She whimpered, doubled over on her knees, clutching weakly at an elixir bottle. Barret leapt in front of them and took the force of the swing. He was flung hard against the rock wall, screaming as something snapped. Yuffie grunted and tried to stand.  
"Barret...!"  
"Look out!" Nanaki tackled her. She hit the floor, crying out as the pain in her body exploded in a bright flare. She heard the creature whimper and slowly turned her head to see him lying to her right, twitching feebly. The Elemental Keeper loomed over Red, clicking its scorpion-like claws hungrily. Yuffie moaned, returning her bleary gaze to the ceiling of the cave.  
"If...it's this hard to beat...think of the materia it could be guarding..."  
She quickly gulped the elixir. It tasted warm and ice cold; a bittersweet tinge stuck to the roof of her mouth as she stood, feeling her strength rush into her.  
"Yuffie!" Barret appeared beside her, holding onto his gun arm.  
"Hey, Barret!" she chirped and tossed a potion at him.  
"You're yeh usual perky self," he commented, gulping down the small vial then smacking his lips as he shot the large purplish creature in the eye. It squealed, turning away from Nanaki and lumbering toward them.  
"As always–wherever there's materia, I'm ready!"  
"Nah...this ain't materia. It's guardin' somethin' else."  
"Like what!"  
"Just go help Red; I've got it."  
"But Barret–"  
"I've got it! Get goin'!"  
Yuffie mumbled something and went to assist the wounded animal. She looked over her shoulder as she knelt beside the orange-red animal, and saw Barret powering up for his Catastrophe Limit Break. She fished an X-potion from her pocket and pored it down Red's half-gaping mouth. He sputtered, wrinkling his snout and blinking his good eye slowly.

"Yuffie?"  
"Hi, Red," she smiled.  
"Where's Barret?"  
They both winced and ducked low to avoid the sonic blast which followed Barret's attack.  
"Back there," Yuffie jerked a thumb over her shoulder. Red XIII peered around her.  
"Barret?"  
The dark man turned at the sound of his name and flashed them a thumbs-up.  
"We won."  
The other two stood and walked over to him. They looked down at the sprawled corpse, then past it, at the large blue box that sat way back in the recesses of the chamber. Barret was the first to move. He stepped over one of the Elemental Keeper's sprawled legs and knelt before the chest. There was a sharp click and the lid popped up. Barret pulled out a small satchel.  
"Element Break."  
Then he looked down and blinked. He reached in again and came up with a set of gloves, and a medium-sized golden sphere.  
"Telekinetic Gloves."  
He pulled out something else; another set of gloves, but with glittering claws and tips.  
"Prism Gauntlets."  
And he reached down a fourth time and picked up a clear glass materia.  
"Some sort of materia."  
"That's a lot of stuff," Red blinked.  
"Ooh! Gimmie!" Yuffie cried, lunging for the odd sphere. Barret held it up above his head, away from her.  
"No. Notin' is touched 'til we get back to the others."  
"Man..." she pouted. Barret put the weapons and materia away, then opened the satchel for the Elemental Break. A white gleam spread from the mouth of the bag and surrounded Barret. He blinked, then grinned, tossing the now empty leather pouch aside.  
"A new Limit Break."  
"Huh!" Yuffie cried.  
The PHS in Barret's possession suddenly crackled rudely, making them all jump. He grabbed it.  
"Ya' scared us half 'ta death!" he shouted.  
"Sorry," Cait Sith replied meekly form the other end.  
"Wha'cha want, cat?"  
"Um...Cid and Vincent say we're meeting up in Midgar."  
"Midgar!" Yuffie yelped.  
"Why, Cait Sith? What's wrong?" Red asked.  
"Cloud and Tifa are missing, and Hojo's dead."  
"WHAT!" the three in the cave chimed.  
"Uh-huh," Cait Sith meowed. "Vincent said the white-haired kid was killed in a fight with the clones, and they took Tifa away. He also said that one of the clones told them they had killed Hojo. Me, Cid, and Cloud were in a cave when another set of clones came and kidnaped him."  
"They kidnaped Cloud an' Tifa!" Barret almost roared.  
"Yeah," Cait Sith answered.  
"Hojo's dead!" Yuffie gaped at the PHS device.  
"Yeah," he repeated.  
"Is everyone else alright!" Nanaki cried.  
"Yeah! We're just making our way toward Midgar."  
"We'll head there now," Barret answered, walking back to the entrance of the cave. Red XIII followed and Yuffie raced after them both.  
"Then we'll see you in a bit. Bye!" Cait Sith chirped and the machine clicked off. Barret tucked it back into his pocket and glanced at the others.  
"Cloud, Tifa, an' Hojo! I don' believe it!"

"The clones were really worked up about capturing Tifa, but I didn't know they were after Cloud too," Red answered, "or the scientist for that matter." He trotted out into the afternoon sunlight after the man. Yuffie darted halfway down the path, turned, and hollered back up at them.  
"Serves them right! If it were me, I wouldn't let some stupid clones take me!"  
"Who'd wanna kidnap a snotnosed brat like yeh, anyhow?" Barret retorted. Yuffie stuck her tongue out at him and raced down the rest of the trail. Barret and Nanaki shook their heads, following her quickly.


	15. City of the Ancients

Cloud Strife groaned weakly, sitting up and opening his eyes. He had to blink a few times to assure himself that he really did have his eyes open because it was pitch black, wherever he was. Things skittered in the darkness around him as he tried to remember how he had gotten into this position. Tifa...no, Arina–the clone. And Barret's clone. Cid and Cait Sith in a cave...he had been taken. Hit pretty hard judging by the size of the lump on the back of his head. But where exactly had they taken him?  
He stood. "Now where in the heck–!"  
CLANG!  
He fell back down, cursing and grabbing his already-throbbing skull. "OW!"  
Cloud reached up and felt cold metal above him. He lowered his hand to his right and felt slightly separated iron bars. A cage. He was in a cage!  
"This is great..." he sighed, moving so he was on his knees; also as not to smash his head on the low ceiling again. "Now what am I supposed to do!"  
"Cloud...?"  
The whimpering voice came from somewhere on his left. He inched over to that side of his prison until his knee struck the bars. He paused, listening with his breath held. There was a possibility it had been...  
Louder: "Cloud?"  
"Who's there?" he called cautiously. The gasp from the mystery person was audible. He heard shifting, then a cold hand was groping about his face and chest. He let it touch him, familiarizing himself with the gentle caress of the trembling fingers. He reached out with his own hand–or so he assumed; it was still too dark– and grasped it.  
"Tifa?"  
The sigh of relief was close to him, very close. The hand tightened around his, pulling him till he was almost pressing against the bars. The person came just as close, and Cloud could feel scant, shaking breaths washing across his left cheek.  
"Cloud, it is you! How did you get here! Did you come with the others!"  
Cloud wanted so badly to believe it was Tifa he was so close too; the clones had imprisoned her in the same room... But he was highly aware that it could have been a trap. He pulled back and slowly slid his hand from hers.  
"No. I was brought here."  
"You too! That clone, he calls himself Damien, he looks exactly...like you."  
He could hear in her voice she had suddenly become aware of what he had.  
"I was kidnaped by your clone and Barret's. But man, can your double hit hard!"  
She laughed, but it sounded small and forced in the awkward darkness. After a moment, she moved and he heard a sharp bang.  
"OW!"  
Cloud shook his head. If this was the clone, she would have known not to hit her head on the cage roof. Still, he wasn't taking any chances.  
"You okay?"  
"No! How come you didn't warn me about that!"  
"I thought you heard when I hit my head earlier."  
"Yeah, well..."  
He listened as she shifted around the confined area, exploring the same space he had. Then he realized she was grunting softly, and became nervous.  
"Tifa...?"  
"I think...I found a way out of this thing."  
She grunted again and something creaked. There was a pause, then the creak got louder. Tifa gasped and a sound of screeching metal echoed in the blackness. Cloud gritted his teeth but waited silently. Tifa grunted one last time and something clanged hollowly as it struck the stone floor.

"Cloud!" she sounded excited. "One of the poles in my cage was loose! I could probably fit through here..."  
"Be careful," he replied, "you may get stuck."  
"I know my boobs are big, but I'll fit."  
"..."  
Yeah, this was the real Tifa.  
Cloud waited. She sighed, sounding farther away and something cracked.  
"What was that?" he called.  
"My back," she sighed in relief, and he heard her walk over to somewhere in front of him. She groped about but bumped blindly into something. It clattered.  
"Hey! What the–!"  
"What?" Cloud hated being left in the dark like this (now it was literal).  
"I walked into this huge chain..." she trailed off. There was more silence. All of a sudden something began to crank. Cloud listened as the chain rattled and the gears continued working. With a groan, the cage around him lifted and he stood up tentatively. No roof.  
"You did it!" he cried, still unsure of where she was.  
"Told you so," she replied, and he wandered toward the sound of her voice with his arms extended. He felt her own arm, then traced his fingers down its curve and to her hand. Their fingers entwined as she leaned against him.  
"I'm glad you're here, Cloud."  
"Come on; we'll be fine," he smiled, and hoped she knew it.  
Her hand tightened on his and they started forward; he stopped, because there was a voice coming closer.  
"Who is it?" Tifa huddled closely to him. He backed up to where the cage had been, releasing her hand.  
"Stay there."  
"What! Cloud–!"  
"When I tell you to, I need you to release that crank you just wound."  
"But...but..."  
The figure stepped into the room.  
"I can't believe I'm stuck baby-sittin'!" it was a man's voice. He stopped because he, too, had sensed something. "Hello?"  
Cloud took a deep breath: "Hey, &#!"  
The voice was suddenly very scary-sounding: "WHA–!"  
"You heard me! Come get me, you !#!"  
Cloud knew he was stretching it. He was surely going to be ripped to shreds if he wasn't fast enough. He heard the clone coming and could see him in his mind's eye: arms extended, eyes glaring lethally. It was Barret's clone, Waylon. He came like a hound from hell and Cloud jumped, leaping over his head, somersaulting in mid-air, and landing crouched where he assumed the edge of the cage would reach.  
"Tifa, now!"  
She cried out and the chain clicked loudly. The entire thing came crashing down so fast, the gears of the crank exploded beneath Tifa's hands and she yelped in surprise. He heard Waylon turn to come at him. The bars fell between them with a sick crunching noise, and the larger man screamed painfully. Cloud couldn't see what happened, but he suddenly got the feeling that his intention to trap the clone had gone a little further. Tifa stepped over to him and made a choked noise in her throat.  
"Oh, Cloud...!"  
Waylon twitched beneath the mangled bars of the collapsed cage, his bright green eyes staring up at them eerily through the blackness.  
"They'll come..." he grunted heavily, his voice sounding garbled by some type of liquid. "They'll come for yeh...an' there's nothing you can do to stop 'em..."  
His head hit the stone floor. A puddle of mako spread out from under his figure, creeping up to Cloud and Tifa's feet as they stood watching in stunned silence. Something dropped from the top of the cage and landed at Cloud's feet and he stooped to pick it up: a large orb by the feel of it. He felt Tifa groping at him again, and he took her arm and raced out the way Waylon had come.  
"Don't you think we should have done something else! Now the rest of them will come and–"  
"Haven't you learned about these guys!"

Tifa stayed silent as they reached a chamber lit by soft white and blue light. Stopping to catch their breaths, they looked around. Cloud recognized the place first, but Tifa screamed and dropped to her knees.  
"No! No!"  
"We're in the Forgotten City..." Cloud mumbled, his eyes roving over the extravagantly-carved walls and crystal staircases. Then he pulled the orb he had picked up from his pocket. It was a brilliant greenish-white color that shone like the Holy materia Aeris had always kept with her. Aeris... Cloud looked up at the pulpit where he had seen her for the last time...where Sephiroth had started the horrible chain of events that had followed. But, as he had this memory, it wasn't Sephiroth with the sword he saw, but himself. And he remembered Tifa's dream–the one she had told him a few nights ago.  
"It wasn't Sephiroth...it was you."  
In her dream, he had killed Aeris; only it hadn't been him, it had been his clone. Cloud suddenly felt the urge to go to the top of the altar, to see one last time where Aeris's blood had been spilt. He clenched the glowing orb in his right hand and raced up the crystal and stone steps to the central point in the City of the Ancients–the key to the Promise Land.


	16. Rescue Mission

Cid Highwind spat the cigarette butt out of his mouth and reached into his pocket for another one. Vincent Valentine leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes closed. Cait Sith was moving from one pile of rubble to the next, inspecting the pieces of what had been Midgar. Kinto was out in the field searching for more food.  
Cid lit the cancer stick perched on the corner of his mouth: "Where are they!"  
"Patience," Vincent said mildly, opening one eye to look at his comrade. "If they said they were coming, then they're coming."  
"Could they come any slower!" the blond pilot argued.  
"I don't like being here; this place gives me a bad feeling..." Cait Sith meowed from his exploration post.  
"Every place gives you a bad feeling," Cid snapped, inhaling the smoke quickly.  
"Yoo-hoo! Boys!" Yuffie Kisaragi bounded into the darkened building and smiled brightly at them. Red XIII came tearing in next, skidded to a stop, and panted heavily.  
"We got here as fast as we could..." he gulped, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. Barret Wallace stumbled in last, his chest heaving and sweat pouring down his face and neck.  
"Any faster an' I would've killed myself!" he gasped, wiping his large hand across his brow.  
"We had to stop–Barret collapsed on the way here," Red climbed atop a pile of crumbling rocks and sat down.  
"It took us about half an hour to convince him to drink an elixir!" Yuffie shook her head.  
"So, your clone was defeated as well?" Vincent glanced over at Barret.  
"Yeah," he grunted.  
"So now that everyone's here, let's get moving!" Cid bellowed, throwing his half-finished cigarette to the ground and smashing it with the heel of his boot. Cait Sith meowed happily and dug in a pile of debris as the others gathered in a circle.  
"Look what we picked up in Wutai," Barret said, pulling out the items they had found. Vincent quickly took the materia before Yuffie could and inspected it. She jumped up and down, waving her arms frantically as she tried to reach the glass sphere.  
"Kind of strange..."  
"Ngh! Gimmie!"   
"I've never seen anything like this..."  
"C'mon, Vince! Give it t'me!"  
"Barret, do you think this really is a materia?"  
"Vincent!"  
"I dunno," Barret replied, taking it back and putting it in his pocket. Yuffie huffed and stomped over to where Cait Sith was fiddling with something beneath the rocks and dirt.  
"Maybe we should hang onto it until we get Cloud back," Cid suggested.  
"And what do you think we should do with these?" Nanaki motioned to the two pairs of gloves and the other sphere on the ground. Vincent picked up the Prism Gauntlets.  
"This looks like something Tifa would use."  
"Those look more like thieving gloves," Cid said, indicating the claws and ball.  
Yuffie looked up. "What?"  
Cait Sith suddenly opened the box he had found: "Aha! Here, Cid! Catch!"

He tossed Cid a red-handled lance. It looked exactly like his Venus Gospel, except it had another blade at the second end.  
"Where'd you get this?" Cid blinked, studying the weapon.  
"Right here," the cat walked over to them, followed by Yuffie. "It's called the Devil's Pitchfork. Like it?"  
"Couldn't be happier," the older man replied, strapping it to his back.  
"And what are these?" Yuffie picked up the black gloves and the golden orb.  
"Those were the Telekinetic Gloves, remember?" Barret said.  
"Oh yeah," Yuffie replied, placing her shurinkan on the ground and slipping the gloves onto her small hands. She clenched them, and all of a sudden, three golden claws appeared on each set of knuckles. The golden ball glowed, levitated up to her hands and hoovered, as if waiting for a command.  
"Looks like they're yours, Yuffie," Red concluded.  
"Cool!" she squealed, unclenching her fists and tucking the gold ball into her shoulder armor.  
"Okay, so what's the plan?" Cid asked.  
"I'll take two others with me," Vincent suggested. "We'll get to the City of Ancients on Kinto. The rest of you follow in the Highwind."  
"So, who's going on the suicide mission–I mean..." Yuffie covered her mouth with her hand.  
"For that, I'll take you," Vincent replied.  
"Dang it," she pouted.  
"I'll come too," Nanaki jumped down from the rock.  
"Right," Cid nodded. "We'll come in later and save your butts."  
"That'll probably be the case," Yuffie rolled her eyes.  
"Come on, enough talking. Let's go," Vincent commanded. The three walked outside and Vincent whistled. Kinto's head rose up from the tall grasses on their left.  
"See you when we see you," Barret waved.  
"If we don't get killed first," Yuffie muttered, hopping onto the chocobo's back after Vincent.  
"How pessimistic can you be?" Red XIII growled, climbing on last.  
"Good luck!" Cait Sith waved energetically and the gold bird took off toward the ocean.


	17. Damien and Arina

Cloud Strife stepped onto the circular platform standing above the shimmering pools of water at the city's center. His eyes trailed from the altar; he could picture her there now, head bowed. Cloud felt tears stinging at the corners of his eyes and he cleared his throat, shaking his head. The green sphere in his hand throbbed suddenly and he held it out in front of him. White light poured from its surface, illuminating his features and the marble platform beneath him. He heard her footsteps on the path behind him and closed his eyes. He felt a small hand on his shoulder and pressed his cheek to the fingers. They trailed up his face and stroked through his hair, and he finally turned to face her.  
Tifa smiled gently at him. He looked away, still feeling as if he were about to cry.  
"Aeris–"  
"Shh," Tifa pulled his face close to hers. "It wasn't your fault. My dream had to mean something else."  
"I don't know, Tifa, I–"  
"Listen to me. Aeris wouldn't like to see you like this, would she?"  
He shook his head and his eyes fell from hers. "No."  
"I don't like to see you like this either," she continued. "Let go of your pain, Cloud. I'm here for you."  
Cloud looked back into her face. The stone in his hand suddenly seemed to burn into his palm. He broke hie gaze from hers and lifted the rock into his sight.  
"This has something to do with her," he said softly. She clasped both of her hands around his own, prying the stone gently from his fingers and walked to the glass altar. Tifa placed the orb inside a small indentation on the surface. It gleamed, then the entire pulpit shone white. The light spread to the ceiling and gold suddenly ran into the waters below them. Vibrant color spread throughout the City of the Ancients, the cascading waters filling with golden light, the pillars standing white in the green hue which painted the central shrine and gleamed out through the city windows. Tifa backed over to Cloud and they waited, hung in suspense. Just above where she had placed the sphere, a white light glittered. It grew until it took the shape of a person. They both gasped, seeing the figure of Aeris Gainsborough look up from her eternal prayer.  
"A-Aeris!" Cloud gaped.  
Her figure smiled at them; she extended her hands to them, palms facing upward. Before them all appeared a golden light. It stretched outward, shifting and twisting, greenish-white energy gathering in its midst. With another harsh gleam, all the green and gold energy abruptly disappeared.  
"Cloud, look!" Tifa yelped.  
He glanced up, then did a double-take and stared in amazement. A sword was hanging in the air above them. Its blade was a deep glowing mako crystal, enveloped in veins of gold. It was broad and long–approximately six feet in length. The handle was wrapped in white ribbon. The sword hummed with power; Cloud could feel this power surging through him. The weapon lowered from the sky and hoovered chest-height beside his figure.  
"Cloud, that's the sword from my dream," Tifa whimpered.  
He blinked, then reached forward hesitantly and grasped the handle. Great, unimaginable power shot up his arm and flooded his body. Something inside him released a piercing shriek and his body grew hot as he envisioned fire encircling him. The feeling was so intense he fell to his knees and cried out. Tifa gave a little shriek and dropped beside him.  
"I'm...okay," he grunted, reaching for the sword handle again–now it was lying on the floor. Another surge of energy slammed into him and he winced, grabbing onto the handle convulsively. Cloud slowly worked his way to his feet and Tifa stood too, looking deeply concerned.  
"The Ultimate Sacrifice will do that to you."  
"The what?" Cloud panted.  
Tifa bowed her head: "That's what it's called; Aeris told me..."  
Cloud looked at the large weapon. It was so heavy even he had to wield it with two hands.  
"Well, thank you for finding the ultimate weapon for me!"  
Cloud and Tifa spun around and looked down at the path leading back toward the outer city. Cloud Strife's duplicate stood blocking their only way out, Tifa Lockheart's double crouched beside him as his fingers clenched tightly in her hair. She whimpered, struggling to free herself.  
"Give me the sword," Damien grinned, "or both of them shall die."  
"No!" Cloud raced down the altar steps. He swung the new sword around, hearing the power that sung through the air with the attack. The clone ducked his head, the blade passing directly above his head. Cloud stumbled and almost spun around from the force of the swing. They looked at one another and Damien threw Arina to the side. She yelped, hitting the ground and rolling to a stop as she slammed into one of the stone pillars. Tifa gagged, a little red line of blood running from the corner of her mouth. She held onto the railing for support. Cloud screamed and swung the blade again. Damien pulled out his own Ultima Sword and blocked it. They traded blows; Cloud bracing his feet and still skidding back from the incredible strength of his clone's attacks. They both paused and Tifa ran down from the pulpit.  
"Cloud, behind you!"

He was grabbed by two small, strong arms. He glanced over his shoulder to see Arina's glowing green eyes. She had her arms hooked around his so he could no longer raise his sword. It fell to the ground with a clatter. He grunted, gripping her arms tightly and trying to yank her off. She laughed in delight, her lips brushing his ear. Then she growled and sunk her fangs into the tender flesh of the lobe. Cloud shrieked in surprise, falling back on top of her. Arina stumbled, her grip on him loosening and Tifa took the opportunity. She tangled her fingers in her clone's hair and yanked her away. All three collapsed to the ground.  
Cloud leapt to his feet and rushed over to the golden sword. Damien tripped him and he went rolling. He turned, slammed into his double's feet, and they both hit the floor. Damien landed on top and pinned Cloud, then proceeded to knock him sensless. Cloud's head slammed against the marble floor. However, he saw the spill of blood that began to trickle from his clone's nose.  
Tifa threw Arina into the darkness and stood, looking at the fight between the two Cloud's. They were punching, cursing, thrashing...and she couldn't tell which was which.  
"Cloud!" she screamed. The one on the floor kicked his double away and stood shakily.  
"Tifa!" he gasped and started forward, but the other swung out his leg and tripped him. They fell onto one another, fighting again. Tifa watched, not sure what to do. Arina came from the side and tackled her. The girls hit the ground and Tifa kicked her in the stomach, feeling the blow in the pit of her own. She moaned, sitting up as Arina crashed into the water below. Tifa got up and let out a cry, diving into the water after her clone.  
Down in the murky depths, they both took their fighting stances. Tifa's body glowed bright yellow, and then she lunged forward to perform her Limit Breaks:  
Beat Rush–Arina's fist met her own.  
Somersault–their legs struck painfully together.  
Water Kick–the water around them rushed in two identical bursts.  
Meteodrive–their arms met one another's quickly.  
Dolphin Blow–two grayish-silver dolphins came from the water beneath them, swirled together, and disappeared.  
Meteor Strike–they grabbed one another about the throat, glaring heatedly back and forth.  
Final Heaven–Tifa's right fist and Arina's left drew back, gathering incredible power on the knuckles and they swung at the same time.  
Cloud and Damien both looked up as a typhoon of water spun upward from where the girls had fallen in.  
"Tifa!" Cloud yelled.  
"Don't look away, you might die."  
Cloud glared back up into his clone's face, clenching his teeth in frustration.  
Tifa and Arina suddenly burst out of the center of the water twister, landing half-crouched on the ground. They both stayed in that position motionless for a long time. The sounds of struggle between the two Cloud's was at this moment, of no importance.  
"Why do you even bother?" Arina hissed and Tifa flinched. "Haven't you two figured it out yet?"  
"Yes," she replied, finally standing. "And I told myself I wouldn't run anymore."  
"Then you are foolish."  
"Maybe I am...but I won't let you harm Cloud again."  
She extended her arms, a white light surrounding her. Arina grinned smugly, her eyes pulsating green and a white light engulfed her body as well.  
"Don't try it–I even know that move."  
Tifa stopped, the power around her fading. She glared at her clone and took a step back. Arina formed a pink energy sphere in her hands, letting the white beams of light swirl around her figure. The sound of battle still continued off to the side and the female clone turned in that direction.  
"Damien! Throw him this way!"  
"Cloud!" Tifa shrieked. One of them kicked his duplicate away, jumping to his feet. Before he could speak the one on the floor dove at his ankles and they fell again. They rolled around shouting, and Arina grinned, getting ready to throw the sphere. Tifa gasped and darted forward as one of them stood and looked at the attacker. Arina let the pink light surround her and her target, spinning around. The boy standing stared ahead as the attack rushed for him. Tifa lunged.  
Cloud Strife let out a yell and threw Damien away. The clone winced and got to his feet, then looked up at Arina. She was throwing a pink energy ball at Damien, probably thinking he was the real one. Cloud suddenly wondered what would happen if it hit his double...but before he could find out he saw Tifa rushing forward.


	18. Sacrifice

"Tifa, no!" he tried to yell over the sound of the attack, but she didn't hear. He leapt to his feet just as she threw herself in front of Damien, arms held out in front of her. Cloud screamed and the energy struck her, exploding up in one powerful flare. Cloud ducked and shielded his eyes, hearing her shriek. He waited until the light began to fade then ran forward. Damien still stood, looking down at Tifa Lockheart. She fell to her knees before him, eyes closed tightly with pain. Cloud ran to her, throwing himself to his knees and catching her in his arms as she fell.  
Damien stepped back and watched Cloud pull Tifa tightly against his chest. He looked up at Arina. She was lying sprawled on the ground unnaturally, dull green eyes staring blankly up at the ceiling.  
"...foolish."  
"Tifa?" Cloud swallowed hard, shaking her gently. "Tifa, it's me."  
She let her eyes open gradually: "C-Cloud...?"  
"Yes," he sighed. "It's me."  
Tifa's eyes suddenly filled with tears. "I...I'm sorry...I jumped to conclusions..."  
"No! It's my fault! I should have taken you out of here instead of unlocking the stupid sword–"  
"Ultimate Sacrifice...will help you win...and this...is my ultimate sacrifice..."  
"Tifa, you can't die!"  
She laughed weakly, wincing as something twisted inside her. Cloud swiped a hand quickly across his eyes.  
"I am dying, Cloud..."  
"No!" tears began to blur his vision.  
She put a weak finger to his lips, smiling softly.  
"I was telling Zeo a story..." his eyes flashed as she said this, "but I never finished... I guess it ends here."  
"What story, Tifa?" Cloud asked weakly.  
She closed her eyes, tears streaming down her crimson cheeks:  
"The girl followed him on many adventures...over mountains...through valleys...across oceans...slowly developing...into a grown woman..."  
"Tifa," he choked back a sob.  
"Together...they struggled to uncover their pasts...and correct their future...the future she wanted to share with him," she opened her eyes, "and only him..."  
Cloud bit his lip, sobs hitching in his chest. "I won't let you die. I need you with me!"  
"...even though they never told one another, deep inside...the woman knew that he loved her...and she returned the feeling."  
Cloud's eyes widened. His mouth opened to say something, but she smiled at him; the special, beautiful smile that he knew she showed only to him. Her head dropped onto his shoulder and she shuddered. Her fingers tightened on his arm, then relaxed. One of her tears plunked onto the bare flesh of his arm. Cloud took her face in one hand and guided her eyes to his; they were closed.  
"Tifa...?" he called weakly. No response. He began to breath rapidly, the tears which hung in the corners of his eyes finally–for the first time in his life–rolling down his cheeks.  
Damien now stood beside his fallen comrade. He looked her over, turning up his nose in disgust.  
"Weak," he snarled, looking up at Cloud and Tifa again. His original stood, holding Tifa in his arms. Cloud slowly walked to the side where the stone steps spiraled upward to escape the shrine. He lay her body on the first step and spotted the gold and mako crystal sword on the ground to his left. He picked up the Ultimate Sacrifice, twirled it in one hand and strapped it to his back. He lay his old Ultima Sword beside Tifa and turned back to Damien, tears still cascading down his cheeks. His blue eyes burned with rage, then gleamed and turned bright red.  
"I knew I cared for her..." he stated, "but I didn't realize how much I loved her..."  
"Human, you're making me sick," Damien retorted, crossing his arms over his chest. Cloud slowly began to walk forward, red and gold energy encircling his profile.  
"You are the only one left," he continued, a distant melody echoing in the light around him. Damien heard it and lowered his arms to his sides.  
"What trick do you have up your sleeve now?"  
Cloud clasped his hands out in front of him. Bright fire engulfed his figure. Two giant orange-red wings burst forth from his back. The flames rose, circling around the gleaming feathers. Another set of feathered wings–these, white and gold-tipped–ripped free of his mid-back. The fire grew larger, spreading fierce red light across the stone and marble around him. A third pair of wings–golden, red-webbed, dragon-like wings–shot out from the lower back. He opened his mouth and a shriek issued from his throat. Cloud Strife disappeared. In his place stood a huge golden-red Phoenix.

Damien blinked as the enormous bird stepped toward him, beginning to croon the soft, enchanting melody it had sung before. Red lightning flared around him, trapping him in a web of flaming electricity. The Phoenix threw back its head and whistled shrilly, a glittering pinpoint of light forming over Damien's figure. It gleamed, then a gold pillar shot down and engulfed him. The red lightning turned into flames and roared up to fill the pillar. Everything finally exploded.  
Cloud returned from the summon, sighing wearily. He looked back at Tifa's still figure–the PhoenixZERO had done nothing for her. His lips tightened and he glared up at the place Damien had been standing throughout the entire attack. The clone was still there, not a single scratch on his profile.  
"Impressive, but I think I'll be more impressed if it actually did some damage."  
Suddenly there was a loud roar. Form behind Cloud came a huge red and black dragon with a pair of spike-tipped demon wings. It lunged forward, snapping its jaws about Damien's waist and flinging him into the water. Cloud gasped and dropped to one knee, gaping wounds appearing on his chest and stomach. He shuddered as blood poured quickly from each of the holes and his vision started doubling. Damien came back up and the dragon jumped on him again. He pulled himself from the water and rolled away, getting to his feet. He and Cloud glared at one another as the blond mercenary tried to stand up as well.  
"Hey! Why don't you pick on somebody half your size!" a girl shouted. For one wild moment, Cloud thought Tifa had come back to life after all. He looked back to see who it was and Yuffie rushed up, flinging a golden sphere at Damien. The orb lashed out past his duplicate then swung back around, eventually containing him in some kind of force field. Red XIII blew past Cloud and slammed Damien to the floor.  
"Stay down!" he snarled bitterly.  
"Nanaki...?" Cloud blinked in a half-daze.  
"Hey, don't forget about me!" Yuffie Kisaragi appeared on his other side, winking.  
"Yuffie?" he blinked again.  
The dragon roared, snapping at his clone, but he dodged out of the way and turned.  
"I'll come back for you, Cloud Strife!"  
He disappeared, holding a gash in his side. Yuffie huffed and put her hands on her hips.  
"Well that's not very nice!" she commented.  
"I don't think it was supposed to be," Red looked over at her.  
"Still," she snuffed her nose impatiently, "when that guy comes back; man, I'm gonna get him!"  
The dragon that had appeared first stepped before Cloud and glared down at him with narrow red eyes. It glowed and dissolved in a yellow flare of power. Vincent Valentine stood in its place, brushing his hair back and spitting green mako out of his mouth.  
"He wasn't very tasty, I will say that."  
Cloud just gaped at them for a moment, then shook his head and looked down.  
"You guys..."  
"You okay, Cloud?" Yuffie asked, placing a hand on his arm. He shook his head, turned, and limped back toward the stairs. They followed him. Cloud knelt beside Tifa Lockheart's body, tears flowing back into his eyes. He picked her up and wordlessly ascended the stairs. Vincent picked up the Ultima Sword that had been lying next to her, looking up after him.  
"Cloud, stop! You need to heal yourself!" Yuffie called after him.  
"We should have come sooner," Red XIII whimpered. Cloud disappeared with Tifa up into the outer city.  
"I doubt if we came a day sooner, we could have stopped this from happening," Vincent replied. "I think she was meant to die in this place."  
"How can you say that!" Yuffie cried. "No one is meant to die! Cloud has lost another girl he cared for–"  
"And she died in the same place the first did," Vincent cut her off. Yuffie shook her head, but didn't say anything else. They paused, Nanaki sitting down and curling up into a ball.  
"Cloud is going to take Kinto."  
"I know," Vincent replied.  
"How can you know all this stuff!" Yuffie snapped through her tears.


	19. Who Am I?

Cloud Strife looked up blearily at the sound of an engine. The Highwind was hovering over the City of Ancients.  
"Yo, Cloud!" he saw Barret Wallace waving from the top deck. Cloud dropped his gaze and spotted Kinto, their golden chocobo, lying near the bank of the lake. He whistled and its head perked up instantly. With a wark it ran over to him.  
"Cloud!" Now Cid Highwind was leaning over the side and calling down to him. Cloud ignored them, clambering onto Kinto's back, still holding on to Tifa.

"CLOUD!" Cait Sith was now yelling into his megaphone. "CAN'T YOU HEAR US! WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHERS!"  
He kept on ignoring them, urging the golden bird into a run down the path out of the city.  
"CLOUD!"  
He squeezed his eyes shut and called loudly over his shoulder: "Just leave me alone!"  
He dug his heels into Kinto's sides. The chocobo let out a little shriek–Cloud had kicked a bit too hard–and shot across the passageways, leaving the city and his comrades behind.  
"What the hell's his problem!" Barret shouted.

Red XIII and Yuffie looked up when Cait Sith appeared at the top of the stairs.  
"Guys! What happened!"  
"Where are the others?" Vincent asked without glancing in Cait Sith's direction.  
"Right outside! Look, can we know what's going on! Cloud and Tifa just–"  
"Tifa's dead," Yuffie said blankly.  
"WHAT!" the cat-mog screeched. Barret and Cid quickly came running in.  
"What's goin' on!" Barret looked around wildly.  
Cid lost it: "#ing cat! You #ing scared us to death! What are you #ing screaming like that for!"  
"Tifa... Tifa's..." he gasped, heedless of the anger which came from the older man.  
"Tifa's wit Cloud! So?" Barret cried.  
"Tifa's dead," Red repeated the statement in the same expressionless manner.  
"WHAT!" the two men shouted in disbelief.  
"How!" Cait Sith wailed.  
"We don't know," Red shook his head.  
"We found her dead," Yuffie continued.  
"Stop sayin' 'dead'!" Barret tried to cover hie ears.  
"Vincent and Yuffie were able to reach new Limit Breaks because of it," Nanaki explained.  
"That doesn't matter," Vincent stood, starting up the stairs toward the three in the entranceway. "What does matter is that Cloud's clone is the only one left alive–"  
"Red's too," Cid reminded softly.  
"And we need to figure out a way to kill him, and not Cloud," Vincent finished.  
"Didn't Cloud say that the clones live off Mako?" Cait Sith wondered aloud.  
"I know they do," Vincent grumbled, reaching them. The other two started up slowly.  
"So, why don't we lure his clone into a trap!" Yuffie suddenly cried. The others looked at her. "Or not."  
"That may work," Red analyzed, "but can we guarantee Cloud will be alright if we kill this clone in any way?"  
They thought of this silently. The quiet was broken by the occasional whimpers from Barret.  
"I...I can't do this now," he moaned, rubbing his hand across his eyes. "I can't stop thinking about...Tifa..."  
Everyone looked down at the floor.  
"Let's go look for Cloud," Cait Sith meowed. Nanaki and Yuffie reached the others and nodded.

The door of the darkened house swung inward. Cloud Strife glanced around the foyer then reached back and pulled Tifa Lockheart from the chocobo's saddle. It called out after him as he entered the house and made his way up the stairs. He reached the second floor, looked into the main bedroom, then turned and kicked the door on his left. It flew open, slamming into the opposite wall and he looked down at the body in his arms.  
"Tifa..." his cold blue eyes softened. He carried her body over to her bed by the window and lay her down atop the woven quilt. He knelt beside the bed and closed his eyes but the tears kept coming, stinging the back of his eyelids. He quickly moved his eyes away from her.  
"Why did this have to happen?" Cloud stroked his thumb across the smooth skin of her hand, lowering his forehead to her shoulder. "This can't be true... I just wanted to tell you one thing for so long, and I can't now...there wasn't enough time..."  
He suddenly pounded his fist against the wall beside him and screamed:  
"TELL ME WHY! I HAVE NOTHING LEFT NOW! NOTHING AT ALL! TELL ME WHY!"

He screamed again, throwing his head back and letting the tears burn down his cheeks. He leapt quickly to his feet and turned to the wall. With a hard swing, he sent his right fist through the plaster and wood: Crunch!  
"TIFA!" Cloud wailed, swinging his other fist into the wall: Crunch! "I won't let it end like this; I won't! I WON'T!"  
SLAM! Crunch! SLAM! Crunch!  
"Cloud..." someone whispered. He turned from the wall, tears blurring his vision, and saw the figures of his friends standing in the doorway of Tifa Lockheart's bedroom. He sniffled as Yuffie Kisaragi stepped forward. She wrapped her arms around his mid-chest and peered up at him sadly. Cloud looked away, not moving to embrace her nor pulling away. The others slowly filed into the room one by one looking Cloud in the eyes, then turning to mourn Tifa's still figure on the bed.  
"Even now, she's beautiful..." Barret Wallace murmured, and Cloud looked up. The older man was kneeling beside the bed as Cloud had done, holding one of her hands and looking into her pale face. Red XIII was up on his hind legs, his fore-paws resting atop Tifa's head and lining the curve of her shoulder.  
"Tifa..." he whimpered softly. Yuffie pulled away from Cloud and walked over to Barret's side, placing a hand on his shoulder. Cait Sith sat at the end of the bed, looking at her and meowing softly as he cried. Cid Highwind was inspecting the holes in the wall Cloud had made.  
"Kid, you pissed or what!" he turned to the blond youth, who glared angrily back at him. Cid held up his hands: "I know, I know...I'm upset too."  
Vincent Valentine walked in from his post by the door and elbowed Cid in the side. "Not now, you idiot."  
"Ow!" the pilot fell against the piano, rubbing his arm. Vincent stood before Cloud:  
"I can't tell you to get over this...but I can relate to you."  
He put a hand on his shoulder. Cloud shook his head, walking over to the piano Cid was leaning against. The others turned to look at him as he moved. He sat on the bench and closed his eyes.  
"I used to be able to play the piano... I played for her," he gulped, "once. It was this song she used to sing when we were younger..."  
He paused, then tapped the C-note with his finger. The sound rang clearly through the room, sharp enough to cut the air around them. He opened his eyes and placed his fingers in the rest position atop the ivory keys. He began to play. The song was eerily-calm. It wrenched deep into the hearts of all the people in the room, and made fresh tears spill down their cheeks. Cloud slowly, softly, began singing:  
"I was all alone...no one to guide me through the darkness...of my heart... I once reached for you, and your fingers left mine...I was all alone."  
Nanaki suddenly realized something and shook his tears aside. "That songit sounds so familiar..."  
"Tear my heart open; sift through my memories: Who am I? Lift all the masks away; come face to face with me: Who am I?"  
"That's the Phoenix's Song!" the red animal gasped.  
Vincent looked down at him: "What?"  
"Remember that song the Phoenix was singing? This is it!"  
"How?" Vincent looked at Cloud's back. The blond mercenary continued to sing:  
"Please, come back to me...I sit as a scared child in the black...of my soul... Steal through the night and discover, beside me forever... Who...Am...I...?"  
"Cloud," Red stepped forward, "that song..."  
"Yeah," he pulled away from the piano and stood, "I know." They looked at him and he let his eyes fall on Tifa's figure. Cloud stared at her for a long time, almost as if he were waiting for something. He finally blinked away his tears and turned a hardened gaze back to the others.  
"We're going to hunt Damien like the animal he is. I'll take Kinto and explore the islands surrounding the continents. Yuffie and Cait Sith, go search the island of Wutai. Vincent and Barret, Midgar. Cid and Red XIII will stay here."  
They all nodded. Vincent pulled the Prism Gauntlets out of his belt, then lay them at Tifa's feet. One by one, their heads bowed, they walked out of the room–Cloud, the last to leave. He pulled the PhoenixZERO materia from his belt and placed it in her hand. The orb glowed and then dulled. He backed up to the doorway and hung there for a moment, then lowered his eyes and slowly shut the door. He was the only one out in the hallway now. His chest hitched as a few sobs escaped him.  
"Tifa... I love you."


	20. The Promised Land

Tifa Lockheart stared up at the black sky above her, blinking slowly.  
"What happened?"  
A huge red and gold bird suddenly streaked through the air above her. She sat up and stared at it, making out the fiery wings and rainbow tail.  
"The Phoenix?"  
"That's right; it is the Phoenix."  
Tifa turned to the voice: "Who's there?"  
Aeris Gainsborough smiled at her. She scrambled to her feet and stood face to face with the spirit of the other girl.  
"Aeris! Where am I! What are you doing here!"  
"You're in the Promise Land, Tifa."  
Tifa blinked and looked around. "This...? This is the Promise Land!"  
"Yes," Aeris nodded. "You are here because you have died."  
Tifa was a little shocked to hear it, but at the same time knew it was true.  
"So, what happens now?" she asked.  
"Nothing."  
"Nothing?"  
"You are now part of the planet–you cannot return to the world of the living."  
The young women stared at one another for a few tense moments. Tifa shuddered and looked back up, where she now saw NeoBahamut and BahamutZERO chasing after the Phoenix across the dark sky.  
"Why are the summoning creatures here?"  
"Summons, like you might have guessed, come from the planet. There is a very long story behind them which concerns the Cetra."  
"What is it?" Tifa sat in the cool grass again. Aeris swirled her skirt and knelt before her, smoothing out the wrinkles and brushing her hair back from her face. Tifa suddenly leaned over and touched Aeris's hand.  
"Yes, I am actually here–this isn't a dream," Aeris smiled.  
"Then how do you know what I'm about to ask you?" Tifa did not return the gesture.  
"We are one now that we are both within the planet," the brown-haired girl explained. Tifa shook her head, sighing deeply.  
"Maybe you should just tell me the story."  
"Very well," Aeris nodded. "Long ago, when Gaia was still very young, the Cetra discovered a passageway into the Promise Land from the City of the Ancients. They called it the Gateway, and labeled each realm Inner and Outer World: Inner, being the Promise Land. Here is where the Entities of Time–the summons– roamed freely, protecting the world from any evil which threatened the people of Gaia. At one time, a great battle took place; so fierce that the planet shook itself apart. In order to save the crumbling world, the Entities encircled it with bands of their own life force. They flew around the planet faster and faster, until the mere speed of the forces themselves drew the planet back together and created the Lifestream.  
"Since that time, the Ancients have always worshiped those gods whom sacrificed themselves to save our world. Each individual river of the Lifestream represents one of those gods–the Phoenix, Bahamut, Shiva, Ifrit...all of them. The Cetra harnessed the power from each 'stream' and created special red spheres which contained the life essence of each creature."  
"Materia?" Tifa blinked.  
"Correct," Aeris nodded. "As more people discovered the Ancient's technology, they mimicked the idea of containing magical abilities into orbs, which people later donned 'materias'. Because they began to see the wrongdoings of draining the blood–or mako energy–from the planet, the Cetra tried to put a stop to the makings of materia. They sealed off the entrance to the Inner Realm and hid their city behind spells and enchantments. However, the Ancients were slowly dying out. Soon there was only one left–my mother."  
"Aeris..."  
"So, that is the summarized tale of the gods and the Promise Land. That is why you are here–to help rejuvenate Gaia."  
Tifa thought for a moment, then stood and stretched her back, her joints snapping loudly. Aeris watched her with her piercing, green-eyed gaze. Tifa rolled her shoulders, cracked her neck, popped her fingers, shook her hair out, then looked down at Aeris.  
"I don't believe that."  
"What?" the other girl tilted her head.  
"That I'm stuck here–I don't believe it."  
"Why not? You can't go back, can you?"  
"That's what I have to find out."  
Aeris's figure got to her feet: "You cannot go."  
"Sorry, but I am going."  
Tifa started in the opposite direction. There was a rushing sound behind her and she felt the thin edge of a long sword press against her back.  
"You are going nowhere, Tifa."  
She whirled back around to face the new person:  
"Sephiroth!"  
The man with the long silver hair laughed and pulled back the blade of his weapon, the Masamune.  
"That's right. Now, is my opportunity to reveal the true power of the Promise Land to you."  
She stepped back, clenching her fists. "I fought you once and I'll fight you again!"  
Sephiroth laughed and she shuddered, but held up her fists and moved her feet into fighting position. He turned from her instead and lifted his arms toward the dark sky. A purple-rimmed hole appeared before them, and an image of Cloud Strife came into focus.  
"Look at him running–running from his destiny," Sephiroth grinned darkly. "He still hides in his doubt, refusing to accept the truth."  
"What truth!" she yelled, stomping her foot. Sephiroth turned back to her, but sheathed his blade.  
"That he was chosen eons ago to go about the work of one the mightiest entity, BahamutZERO."  
Tifa blinked. "Why BahamutZERO? And what do you mean Cloud was chosen–?"  
"As all the Entities of Time were reincarnated, so was the one evil being they had defeated. Attributes of each summon were passed on to people, so none could completely forget the true power of the battle that had taken place."  
Tifa blinked and stared at Cloud's image.  
"You're telling me that Cloud is the reincarnation of the evil which almost destroyed the planet!"  
"Yes," the man in the black armor grinned, waving his arm and shattering the picture of the mercenary. "And that is why Hojo created the clones–so he could bring out the hidden powers within Cloud and yourself."  
"Myself!"  
"Why do you think only your two clones were developed differently?"  
She snarled loudly at him, turning and starting to run away. "I won't believe it!"  
"But you have to. It is indeed the truth."  
Tifa turned quickly, striking another fighting stance, then almost screamed.  
"Bugenhagen!"  
The old man in the purple robe smiled and bowed to her.  
"Yes, it is me."  
"Bugenhagen, this can't be true! Cloud's not...I'm not–!"  
"Evil?"  
"Exactly!"  
"My dear, there is not much difference between evil and good."  
Confused, Tifa watched him float around her in his naturally mysterious way, then look up at the black sky.  
"How can you say that!" she yelped.  
"Tell me, what do you fight for?"  
"Well, for myself...and to avenge the deaths of those I have lost–"  
"Now, tell me what Sephiroth's motives were."  
"To destroy the planet–"  
"What for?"  
"To create a perfect world for...himself." She understood. But it was so strange and surreal that she had to ask again: "But if good and evil are the same, why do they conflict?"  
"Ah, very good question," the old man smiled. "And to answer, I shall use Cloud as the example."  
"Was what Sephiroth said really true?"  
He nodded: "The dragon god gave that boy an awesome power...as the Phoenix God's powers reside in you."

Tifa looked down at her hands, which were trembling.  
"I'm...a reincarnation of the Phoenix?"  
"Now, to answer your question: is Cloud evil?"  
"No!" she cried. "No! He's kind and sweet and brave and...and I love him. I can't love someone who's evil!"  
"So what do you think about the good and evil system now?"  
"...were the other summons evil when they were Gods?"  
Bugenhagen shook his head.  
"For the most part, all of the Gods were righteous and noble. There were the exceptions of course, like Bahamut and its first offspring, NeoBahamut, and Hades...but they all had immense power–that I can assure you of."  
"So then why did they all fight against BahamutZERO?" Tifa knelt in the grass before Nanaki's grandfather.  
"Because they all believed in the same thing...Gaia and its people should live."  
She thought hard as Bugenhagen floated past her and toward what seemed to be a small lake that had appeared before them. Tears fell rapidly down her flushed cheeks and she wiped them aside hastily. Her chest hitched once or twice, but she finally conjured the strength to look up. Bugenhagen had vanished.  
Tifa gasped and got one foot under her, then her eyes were suddenly drawn toward the lake–as if they had been pulled. She crawled over to its edge instead and hesitantly peered down over the side. The water in the ground was a deep red; thick and dark like blood. Tifa slowly touched a finger to it and pulled away making a sound of disgust–it was blood! Shuddering in revulsion, she turned from the lake and sat beside it, clenching her fists in the cold dirt. Blades of grass tore from the ground and fell from her hands as she clenched and unclenched them, shaking and crying. Very faintly, she suddenly heard someone calling her name.  
With a shriek she clamped her hands over her ears and curled her body inward:  
"No! No, I can't take it any longer! LEAVE ME ALONE!"  
The calling continued. Tifa grabbed her ears and twisted them, trying pain to block out the sounds. She was sobbing uncontrollably, tears pouring from her eyes; still, the voice went on:  
"Tifa..."  
"NO!"  
"Why did this have to happen..?"  
"Leave me alone!"  
"This can't be true..."  
"Stop it! Stop it! STOP IT!"  
"I just wanted to tell you one thing.."  
"NO MORE!"  
"..for so long.."  
She regressed to senseless mumbling, grasping her knees tightly and rocking back and forth.  
"..and I can't now."  
Tifa moaned and shook her head, biting convulsively on her bottom lip. Tiny beads of blood slid down her; there was silence. She stole a glance into the field, strands of her hair which had fallen loose shielding her face. The Phoenix sat before her some thirty yards away. She stared at the burning figure of the large firebird as it turned its narrow face to her. She gasped and shrunk away, but a thought suddenly struck her.


	21. Returning

It didn't depend on the views of good and evil, but how you used the strength from within.  
And as soon as she grasped this thought, another voice came to her; it seemed to speak to her heart instead of her mind. Then it was no longer talking, but singing:  
"I was all alone...no one there to guide me through the darkness...of my heart..."  
"My song?" she whimpered softly. The pool of blood beside her began glowing, and she looked down at it once more. Cloud was playing her piano in her room and singing:  
"I once reached for you, and your fingers left mine..."  
"Cloud," she whispered and touched the surface of the blood lake. The image rippled, but did not fade.  
"I was all alone..."  
"No," she shook her head. "I won't let you be alone."

"Tear my heart open; sift through my memories: Who Am I? Lift all the masks away; come face to face with me: Who Am I?"  
Tifa's voice suddenly rose above his:  
"Please, come back to me...I sit as a scared child in the black...of my soul..."  
And to finish it all, the Phoenix's enchanting whistle echoed their voices in sync:  
"Steal through the night and discover, beside me forever...Who...Am...I?"  
She had been watching Cloud's profile–the pain on his face, the tears in his eyes; she had never seen him cry. But as the song ended, his image withdrew back into the depths of the blood lake.  
"NO!" she shrieked and dove into the dark liquid. As she went under, panic clutched at her chest. What was she doing in here! Cloud wasn't at the bottom–he was in the Outer Realm with the others! She envisioned them all one by one: Barret, Yuffie, Nanaki, Cait Sith, Vincent, Cid–all crying, all missing her. And Cloud...something other than determination burned within him. Something beside the evil dwelt inside him and was ripping at his heart...  
"Tifa... I love you."  
Tifa's eyes shot open and she looked through the murky substance to the bottom where something was glowing. She focused on it; latched onto the fire that had suddenly exploded within her soul–Cloud loved her!  
She dove closer to the light. 'No matter who you are, Cloud, I always want to stay with you! And not even death can separate us anymore!'  
"I'm going back!" she screamed aloud into the darkness. The light suddenly shot up and enveloped her in a spiral of glowing energy. Her profile shone red as something within her shrieked and rose from the depths of her subconscious The lake of blood disappeared and she lunged toward the gateway between the two worlds as if on wings. She passed through the archway and tumbled down from the ceiling of her room, slamming onto her bed.  
Tifa Lockheart's body twitched and she opened her eyes. Sitting up slowly, she looked around her room. Down at her feet were a pair of mako and crystal gloves. There were four holes in the wall beside her bed and a familiar reddish-gold materia in her hand. The others had been here, but why was she alone now?  
A bright flare of gold light exploded from the orb. She felt a sudden flame torch in her chest. Then it was gone as quickly as it had come; she remembered what had happened–now they were probably searching for Damien. She stood and grabbed the new gloves–the Prism Gauntlets–and put them on. Power and magic flooded through her arms and spread down the rest of her person. Her head cleared and her vision sharpened. It was time to go. With a last look at the piano, where Cloud had been singing, she ran out of the room.

Cloud Strife got down from the golden animal's back and placed a hand on its beak. Kinto warked and nudged him forward. Cloud looked back at him, then to the dark cave entrance. The bird had taken him to a remote island way on the upper right-hand corner of the world map; Cloud had only been here once before–to get the Knights of the Round summon materia. Now he stared at the cave entrance and wondered why Kinto had brought him here. He took a few steps forward and the chocobo warked very loudly. Cloud jumped and stumbled into the cave. He glared back at the gold bird and it called to him happily, then turned and left. Muttering curses, he continued through the darkness and into the dimly-lit cavern.  
It was just as Cloud remembered: empty, glowing surreally from a spot of energy buried in the ground. He walked around the glowing point in the dirt, inspecting it carefully. Something else had taken form beneath the earth...and it wasn't a materia. Curious, he knelt beside the light and touched the ground. A sense of power quickly surged through him and Cloud instantly knew he had to have whatever was under there. He cracked his knuckles and dug his fingers into the dirt, feeling burning hot metal at his fingertips. He labored over the spot for a few minutes, finally uncovering the top half of what looked like full-body armor. Curling his fingers around the shoulder pads, Cloud gave a heave and the entire thing pulled up from the ground, making him fall backward.  
Rubbing his back, he sat up and held the armor out in front of him. He had been right; it was full-body armor–bright yellow-gold chest plate, shoulder guards, gauntlets, and a new plate belt. He brushed the dirt off the glittering surface and turned it over. There was something inscribed on the back plate:  
"Good and Evil may die–Power will always remain."

"We didn't find anything!" Yuffie Kisaragi wailed, plopping down on the bed in the room. Cait Sith shook his head and leaned against the wall beside her. Vincent Valentine stood by the window, looking distant. Barret Wallace was stomping around impatiently.  
"I don't think there was anything to find," Vincent shook his head.  
"I can't believe this!" Barret swung his fists through the air. Cait Sith sighed and held up his PHS device.

"Anyone wanna call the others?"  
Suddenly, the mechanism in his paw crackled and rang shrilly. Everyone jumped and turned to stare at it.  
"Guys!" it was Cid Highwind's voice. "Is anyone #in' listening! We need help! Damien's here, and he–"  
Vincent grabbed the PHS: "Where are you!"  
"Right outside Midgar; near the Chocobo Farm! Look, you have to hurry–the &# found us! We can't hide for much longer!"  
Red XIII's voice abruptly shot above Cid's: "He's here!"  
The device clicked off. Vincent switched it on again, but heard only static.  
"Cid! Cid!" he shouted.  
"We hafta go ta Midgar!" Barret cried. Yuffie and Cait Sith leapt to their feet.  
"That's insane!" Yuffie gasped.  
"We need Cloud!" the mog-cat cried.  
The PHS crackled again: "Vincent! Was that Cid I just heard!"  
It was Cloud.  
"Yes, it was," Vincent replied. "Where are you!"  
"I'm headed in that direction right now! Get there as soon as you can!"  
"Right!"  
The transmission clicked. Cait Sith lowered his ears and laughed nervously.  
"Well, what do you know?"  
"Let's go!" Vincent swirled his cape and ran from the room.  
"He says it like it's so easy to run to instant and painful death!" Yuffie wailed.  
"You keep forgettin'–he's already dead," Barret growled and ran out after him.  
"Oh, that explains it!" she rolled her eyes and darted outside.  
"Man...what's my fortune-telling have to say about all of this!" Cait Sith sighed and chased after her.


	22. Final Battle

Cloud grasped Kinto's feathers tightly as they sped up a rise near the City of the Ancients. His new-found armor glinted sharply in the dying sunlight. He looked back upon the stone settlement and shook his head, closing his eyes.  
"Tifa..."  
Then he and the chocobo were speeding across the ocean to the continent which held Midgar. He passed Kalm swiftly and drew upon the barren lands surrounding the ancient techno-city. Something was suddenly running next to him. He blinked and looked down.  
"Red!"  
"I have no name, unless you intend to bestow one upon me."  
"You're the clone–Kenya!"  
"As you wish."  
"I'm not Damien, I hope you realize–"  
"I understand what I am doing, BahamutZERO."  
"What did you call me?"  
They hit the field just beyond the gully leading to the Chocobo grounds. Kinto skidded to a stop, almost sending Cloud flying over its head. He slipped off its back, and the bird instantly turned and took off.  
"Not very brave, is it?"  
Cloud and Kenya glanced to the side. Damien walked over to them, holding a weapon. Cloud pulled out his own sword, but recognized the one in his clone's hand and gasped.  
"Cid's lance! You–"  
"Cloud!"  
He turned. Cid and Red XIII raced up from his left, Cid looking banged up, but not too severely wounded. Red and his clone exchanged glances, then both advanced toward Damien.  
"Nice armor, Kid!" Cid huffed.  
"Great to have another ally," the orange-red animal growled.  
"I don't approve of his actions–otherwise, you wouldn't find me here," the duplicate snarled.  
"Hey," Cid panted, "who cares right now, huh!"

"Yes, who really cares?" Damien smiled, clenching his fist around the red handle of the double-sided lance. With a creak, the metal snapped in half like a twig.  
"Well, how do ya like that!" Cid spat, his eyebrow twitching in anger.  
"Don't lose it, Cid," Cloud cautioned, "that's what he wants you to do."  
"Lost it!" the older man screamed, suddenly casting a Fire3 attack. Damien wrinkled his nose, brushing the ravaging flames aside and Cloud quickly felt a surge of feverish heat. He shook his head. Damien grinned and pulled out the Ultima Sword. He slowly drew the blade up and lined it against his forearm. With a grin, he pressed the tip across his flesh. Cloud clenched his teeth and Red glanced up in shock as a line of bright red blood ran down his friend's forearm.  
"This clone..."  
"You didn't figure it out yet?" Kenya snorted. "Damien is the reincarnation of evil which resided with in the boy. They are one person."  
"Then Tifa's clone–" Cid blinked.  
"Wait," Cloud looked down. "What do you mean, 'reincarnation of evil'?"  
"It's a long story, Cloud Strife," Damien twirled the large sword, still grinning and slowly healing his wound. Cloud felt the fresh cut on his arm fade as well.  
"Tell me."  
"All you need to know is that Hojo took from you what should never have been given to you in the first place," he replied.  
"Taken what!" Cloud screamed.  
"The essence of true evil which resided within your breast–BahamutZERO, god of beasts."  
Cloud, Red XIII, and Cid looked completely abashed. Kenya merely shook his head.  
"Long ago, the summons were gods, all out to fight one evil entity–the third generation Bahamut dragon..." the dark red creature started.  
"And their battle caused a catastrophic shift in Gaia," Damien continued, sounding rather bored, "and to prevent the planet from crumbling, they made themselves into the ribbons of Lifestream and on occasion, reincarnate themselves into humans, blah blah blah..."  
"Geez, this guy really is an #, isn't he?" Cid called in a slightly amused voice.  
"I'm...evil?" Cloud lowered his eyes to his hands, which were twitching against the handle of the Ultimate Sacrifice.  
"No–a being of evil lives inside of you," Kenya tried.  
"Kenya, I believe it is time for you to depart our gathering," Damien raised an eyebrow. Translucent white energy rose up around him, whipping his blond bangs around his face. Red XIII growled loudly as his duplicate shrunk back in fear.  
"So it's true–you killed them all."  
"I'm not that bad of a person! The only one I really did kill was Hojo," Damien shrugged, feigning innocence.  
"Why!" Cid cried.  
"You just need to shut up," Cloud's double snapped abruptly, the energy he had gathered shooting out from his profile. Nanaki and Kenya yipped and tumbled away; Cid howled in pain, skidding back across the dirt. Cloud held up his sword and blocked the attack, glaring at Damien with cold blue eyes.  
"I won't let you kill any more of my friends!"  
"That's right..." Damien's sharp green orbs rested on him, "She died, didn't she? She was a waste of god's blood as well."  
"What are you talking about?" Cloud never took his eyes from the other.  
"She was the being which held the Phoenix God within her–the one that opposed BahamutZERO to the very end."  
"Tifa...?" he let his sword fall. Damien waited until this point, then lunged forward with his synthesized blade. The crystal edge scratched harmlessly across Cloud's gold chest plate, sending up bright sparks but nothing else.


	23. Summons

"I know that armor," Kenya came limping up, "Hojo was looking for it. It's a special armor crafted by the gods for the one who was to fight BahamutZERO in their place."  
"Die, traitor!" Damien suddenly yelled. Kenya was encircled by purple flashes of light. He howled in pain as they wrapped about his low figure, tearing at his fur and flesh beneath it. Red XIII tackled the blond copy. They hit the ground and rolled, Cloud jumping as gouges appeared on his face and arms.

"Stop it, Red!" Cid struggled to his feet. "You're hurtin' the Kid!"  
Red XIII roared in anger, throwing Damien away and racing back over to the others.  
"Are you alright?" he eyed Cloud. The boy nodded and the creature returned the gesture, then went to help his clone to his feet. Kenya stood, leaning heavily to one side and shaking his angular head.  
"I don't know what we can do about this...he's more powerful than I imagined."  
"We're not going to sit around and wait to die, are we!" Cid yelped, then cried out as something whizzed past his head. Cloud winced and looked up at Damien to see a blue spike of ice protruding from his clone's arm. The icicle glinted and exploded into a burst of fire. Damien snarled as a hole opened up in his shoulder. Cloud grabbed his own shoulder with one hand, feeling the blood begin to trickle out from under the armor. A golden sphere suddenly darted around him and circled the other boy's profile. Golden bands of light wrapped around him as the ball shot high into the air. Cloud gasped and fell to one knee, his life quickly being drained out of him.  
"Stop...!" he choked. "I'll be killed..."  
"You 'aint gonna die!" Barret Wallace grunted, standing beside him.  
"Barret! Guys!" Cid turned to look upon their friends. Yuffie Kisaragi caught the golden orb as it returned to her, making the huge claws pop out from the knuckles of her black gloves.  
"Sorry, didn't mean to hurt ya!"  
"Looks like the fight hasn't even begun," Vincent Valentine crossed his arms over his chest.  
"Aw, come on now, Cloud," Cait Sith blinked. "We were expecting something to have happened already!"  
"Something will happen right now!" Damien screamed. They all turned back to face him; purple and red power swirled around him, darkening the sky and stunning the fighters.  
"Ah &#!" Barret exclaimed.  
"Wrong time to show up!" the black cat wailed. Cloud forced himself to his feet and stepped forward, holding up the Ultimate Sacrifice again. Tongues of the red and purple energy lunged at them and with three hard swings of his golden blade, they diminished.  
"I said: I won't allow you to kill anymore of my friends!" he growled.  
"I don't care what you say!" Damien spat. More of the energy raced toward them. Cloud swung it again, and again the attacks fell harmlessly to the side. The two blonds stood face to face, panting slightly. One looked like a golden warrior with his incredible armor and extravagant blade. The other was the living definition of evil–eyes narrowed to slits, hair flying in the wake of an incredible power that surrounded him.  
The others watched in awe-filled silence. Yuffie was, of course, the one to break it:  
"What's going to happen now?"  
"They're going to fight," Vincent replied softly.  
"We have to fight with him!" Nanaki snorted, clawing at the ground impatiently.  
"Nah, not now," Barret spoke quietly. "This one's all his."  
"Grr!" Yuffie clenched her fists, biting her lip to keep from saying anything else. Vincent put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head slightly. They watched.  
Cloud Strife felt something hit him. Not physically, but like a mental bomb which went off in his head. His eyes unfocused and then started shining bright red. Invisible winds rose about him, and they all slowly began to hear screams. Not from the planet, but different screams–animal-like screams...  
Choco/Mog came first.  
Everyone except Cloud looked around to see the large yellow bird racing toward the field. There was a moggle with a bandana tied around his forehead riding atop its back. The two darted forward and crashed headlong into Damien, who doubled over. The moggle lay on the floor at his feet looking dizzy, but the chocobo came back just as quickly and yanked him away.  
Everyone blinked.  
"What was–!" Damien started.  
The air turned cold.  
A beautiful woman with pale skin and a revealing blue outfit descended from the sky, raising her right arm. A glittering point of white light came from her hand and she thrust it down at them, making huge crystalized ice spikes jut out from the ground and strike Damien. He took a step back in shock as she disappeared.  
Another followed right after her.  
The ground before them exploded and a brown and red creature with gnarled horns burst from the floor and roared. Fire licked out from between its fangs as it drew itself back. With another roar it dove at them, setting the entire battlefield ablaze with heat and flames.

A pillar of earth rose from the charred ground. Out from its top came a man in white and gold robes with a long grey beard. In his wrinkled hands was a green-handled scepter. He raised it to the sky and lightning parted through the clouds above their heads, striking the dirt wildly. Energy crackled along the ground and lit the area for miles.  
A huge cyclops-like beast appeared, teeth gnashed and growling angrily. It reached down to the earth and dug its thick fingers into the crusted surface. With a roar, it pulled the slab of rock from the ground and threw it at the clone.  
A tall, dark warrior on a six-legged stallion appeared before them from a black hole which had opened on the battlefield. In one hand he held a glowing lance. He reared his horse and sent the weapon up into the sky. It abruptly parted the dark clouds above their heads, showing a clear deep night with hundreds of stars. Then it came down on Damien with a mighty crash.  
A bull roared and charged into the area. Flares of red energy exploded. Blue energy spikes shot down and joined together to create a yellow light as the ground shook. This changed to gold sparks, white diamond stars, and orange streaks of energy. Then it reared up on its hind legs and slammed its hooves into the ground, making it tremble violently.  
A great black dragon with a tan underside lowered itself from the heavens, shrieking. A huge ball of light gathered between its jaws and it shot a power beam down from the sky, striking the earth.  
The ground around them crumbled away and a black mech-like structure rose from the depths of the shadows. Its eyes shone a fierce yellow, and it lay its huge arms on either side of the arena. A red line traced out the symbol of 'holy', then everything erupted with one blinding flare.  
The piece of earth Damien stood on broke away from the ground and rose above the black clouds. There, a four-winged red dragon sat in wait. Shrieking, it drew its narrow head back to gather yellow and orange power. It shot out in one huge beam, shattering the piece of rock and sending Damien crashing back to the ground.  
A ball of bluish energy appeared and grew larger and larger until it exploded. A blue-gray serpent took its place, curled in attacking fashion. It let out a supersonic shriek which echoed through the blackness. A huge tidal wave rose from behind it, and the serpent disappeared just as the wave swept across the battlefield.  
Four giant grey pillars shot up from the dirt. A stone platform materialized within their posts, and a hooded skeleton with a huge black cauldron appeared. He chanted incoherently above the boiling vat, green liquid spewing from it and sending an unsettling smog across the field.  
Everything fell away until they were floating in a stormy oblivion. A two-sided monster appeared. The narrow head snorted, sending up a fierce whirlwind. It turned to let the round face have its try. It took a deep breath and shrieked, making everything explode.  
The air shone blue. One by one, knights in medieval armor dropped from the sky and stuck Damien with twelve attacks–half physical, half magical. One knight rose above the rest, wearing a red cloak and donning a huge long sword. He raised the blade and gave a mighty swing, making everything disappear into a white oblivion.  
Cloud Strife held up his sword and waited. He knew–one, from the feeling in his subconscious; two, he wasn't hurt in any way–that Damien hadn't been affected by that wave of assaults. But two had ultimately been missing; where had the Phoenix and BahamutZERO summons gone?  
The others ran over to him, cheering and reaching over to pat him on the back. Loud laughter made them all stop in their tracks. Their eyes turned to the blackened earth which expanded before them and they saw a silhouette advancing through the dust of the explosions. The laughter rang through the silence of the night, making their blood run cold. Cloud stepped away from his friends and crouched.  
"This is far from over. I want all of you to get out of here, now."  
"What!" Cid and Yuffie gaped at him.  
"No way!" Barret cried.  
The clone laughed: "Stupid humans!"  
"Cloud, I think we have to–" Vincent tried.  
"No; get out of here now," Cloud growled.  
"But you'll be killed!" Cait Sith wailed.  
"Cloud!" Red XIII snarled.  
"You'll all perish, one by one, you fools!" Damien continued advancing.  
"Get out of here right now or I'll kill you myself!" the mercenary screamed. The seven looked at him in stunned silence. Yuffie opened her mouth to speak but Vincent turned his back to the others and began to walk away from the battlefield.

"Vincent! Where are you going!" Red howled. "Aren't you going to try and help!"  
"Try, is the operative word," Kenya lowered his head and began to follow after the cape-wearing man. "We would only get in Cloud's way."  
"But we can't just leave him to fight all alone!" Yuffie argued, stomping her foot.  
"He's not going to be alone as long as I'm here!"


	24. Phoenix versus BahamutZERO

Everyone looked up at the sound of the mysterious voice. A person walked onto the battlefield from the right of Damien. He stopped, the laughter dying in his throat.  
"You."  
Tifa Lockheart stood in between the two warriors, glaring daggers at the imposter figure.  
"Me."  
Cloud had let the handle of the Ultimate Sacrifice slip from his fingers. The bright gold weapon clanged loudly as it struck the dirt, and time suddenly seemed to stop. He took a shaky step forward.  
"Tifa...?" he gulped.  
"Cloud..." she looked over at him, her brown eyes soft and sorrowful.  
"Tifa!" Barret shouted. The others ran back onto the field.  
"Tifa!"  
"Stop right there!" she cried. They all skidded to a halt before her. She closed her eyes and smiled gently. "I'm fine, but now I need you all to do me a favor and leave this place as fast as you can."  
"But we can help!" Yuffie protested. Tifa shook her head, opening her eyes.  
"This is a battle Cloud and I must fight together...by ourselves."  
They all looked at one another.  
"Promise me you'll come back," Red XIII lowered his head and inched toward her. Tifa rubbed his fur and stroked a hand across his scarred cheek.  
"I promise."  
"You too, Cloud," the animal turned to him.  
"I'll see what I can do," the boy replied dryly.  
"Good luck," Kenya nodded to them both. He and Red XIII turned and made their way from the battlefield.  
"I love yeh, Tifa," Barret gave her a strong, one-armed hug.  
"Barret..." she grinned sheepishly and rolled her eyes. Barret wiped his own eyes with his hand and suddenly whirled on Cloud.  
"You'd better bring her back alive or your spiky white ass is mine!" he shouted, running off after the two creatures. Cloud shook his head. Vincent tossed a clear orb to Tifa. She caught it in both hands and studied it.  
"I don't know what it's called," he explained, "and I'm not quite sure what it does–why don't you find out?"  
"Thank you, Vincent," she smiled. The mysterious gunner turned on Cloud.  
"Cloud...take care."  
"Thanks," he blinked in surprise.  
"Tifa, I can't let you guys fight alone!" Yuffie stomped her foot. Tifa put a hand on the younger girl's shoulder, "Yuffie, take this back to Wutai."  
Yuffie stared at the offering, eyes wide.  
"You're serious, aren't you...?"  
"Take the materia, Yuffie," Tifa nodded. The ninja girl took the pouch full of orbs, tears abruptly clouding her eyes. She swiped an arm over her crimson cheeks and darted after Vincent.  
"You two better not die!" she hollered over her shoulder.  
"Good luck, Kid," Cid slung his arms around both Cloud and Tifa's shoulders. "I hope you both beat the royal fucking crap outta this guy...but don't do anything I'd be doin' afterwards..."  
With a wink he turned and left. Tifa blushed slightly and Cloud just looked plain bewildered. Cait Sith was the last one left. He bounced up to the two, smiling at them happily.  
"I'm happy I stuck by you guys," he meowed. "You've taught me a lot; now I think you've taught me something else."  
"I'm glad," Tifa smiled back.  
"You guys have always told me to be strong. Now I'm going to tell you the same thing," he grinned, backing up a few steps. "Here, I'll even do a reading!"  
The cat-mog creature swung his arms and tapped his feet, performing his fortune-telling dance. He pulled out the card and handed it to Tifa.  
"Read it when I leave," he said. "I don't want to know how right I might be."  
"Thank you, Cait Sith," Tifa nodded. The black cat waved and bounced off atop his stuffed pink mog. Cloud and Tifa looked after him until his figure faded from view.  
"It's just us now," Cloud sighed, leaning down to pick up his sword.  
"It will always be us, Cloud," Tifa looked down at the paper in her hand.  
"How'd you come back?"  
She smiled her sorrowful smile again, then read the card: "'Death cannot stop true love, only delay it for a time'."  
"What?" Cloud looked down at the card. "He's never gotten something like this before–"  
"Cloud, I want to tell you what I learned in the Promise Land."  
He glanced up quickly at her: "You were at the Promise Land! Then you saw–!"  
"Aeris is fine. In fact, she's the one who explained the war of the gods and the legend of BahamutZERO and the other summons to me."  
"So it's true? We really are descendants of gods?"  
"Not descendants...just people inhabited by a second spirit. When the souls return to Gaia, sometimes the god which created that particular river of Lifestream stays with them as they are reborn into the world."  
Cloud's eyes went to the floor: "Then I am evil."  
Tifa's hand on his cheek made him look up into her eyes.  
"You have just inherited the power of the dragon, not his nature. If that were true, would you really be the Cloud Strife you are?"  
He shook his head. Tifa smiled, then leaned over and put her lips against his ear.  
"Would you like to know how I came back, Cloud?"  
"Y-Yeah," he nodded, staring at her beautiful face from the corner of his eye.  
"I heard you," she whispered softly.  
"I love you," he whispered back.  
She stepped back and he watched her. The materia she had been holding in one hand rose into the air above them, suddenly joined by the gold and red PhoenixZERO orb. The two spheres hung there for a few moments, and then a deep golden hue encircled them both. The light spread across the ground, reaching the figure of Damien, who had stood frozen. Now he looked up at this new glare of light and raised one half-amused eyebrow.  
"What is it this time?"  
Tifa turned to face him. The materias flared, and a red beam of light encircled the three left in the area. As she stepped toward the clone her feet left burning prints where she placed them slowly, deliberately. Halfway across, wings of flame burst from her back, incinerating all of her clothing. Golden electricity shot from her body and crackled along the ground around her. Her eyes burned a bright, gleaming gold, like the materias which hung above her. She was suddenly clad in a long white robe, red and gold trimmings hanging from the sleeves and skirt. A golden headband with a red gem stood out on her forehead, jewelry adorning her arms, hands, and neck.  
"BahamutZERO... I have been defeating you for thousands of millennia, and you still do not surrender."  
It was Tifa speaking, but wasn't; Cloud heard this as she addressed the god living inside Damien now.  
"The Phoenix God has come to fight one last time, only to fall," he replied, his own purple and black aura surrounding him. It seemed to suck up the light Tifa was emitting and growing larger. Damien had also suddenly sprouted huge silver and purple wings. Wicked-looking spikes had rose from his back and shoulders, and his eyes were intensifying in their green glow, narrowing to slits. The Phoenix shrieked. BahamutZERO roared.  
Cloud Strife watched in awe as the two entities rose up to the sky, blocking out the stars which tried to outshine the light of the battle before him. There were shrieks and roars; some of triumph and some of pain. The Phoenix shot across the sky, leaving a trail of golden light behind it. The silver, six-winged dragon suddenly filled the sky with purple lightning and covered the ground in flames of the same color. The Phoenix landed in front of Cloud, singing the song he had always recognized–  
...Steal through the night and discover, beside me forever...  
–but never placed until recently. The dark shadow of BahamutZERO loomed over the great bird in a last attempt to smother its life. It gave one mighty shriek, its song filling the air with such sweetness it brought tears back to Cloud's eyes. The Phoenix's eyes shone and it dove forward, shrieking wildly. A brilliant white explosion rocked the earth, making Cloud stumble. He looked up to see BahamutZERO and the Phoenix no longer there, but Tifa and Damien. The clone fell to his knees, clutching at his chest. He wasn't injured, but something else had occurred–Cloud could feel something was missing now.  
"Your defeat was for the planet..." Tifa said weakly, "but your life shall be taken in the name of the brave warrior who fought with us until you brought about his demise. For Zeo."  
Damien fell over and did not move. After a moment's pause she turned to face Cloud. The materias that had disappeared in the beginning of the battle appeared directly in front of him. The clear orb had become pitch black and the summoning materia no longer retained its powerful glow.  
"What happened?" Cloud asked.  
"This..." Tifa pointed to the first sphere, "is Black Materia. The ability to summon the ultimate destruction upon the planet."  
It disappeared in a wisp of purple smoke. "The PhoenixZERO materia no longer has a phoenix...I have it." The red-gold sphere shattered into golden pinpoints of light and faded.  
Cloud blinked, then looked to Damien's still figure.  
"If he's dead, why aren't I–?"  
"He merely had the will of BahamutZERO in him," she explained. "Now that it's gone, he's nothing more than a mindless puppet."  
Cloud shook his head. "Mindless puppet...that could have been what I was to become."  
Tifa shook her head, smiling her sweet smile–'his' smile.  
"You are Cloud Strife and that's all that you need to be. Right?"  
He paused, then returned the gesture, strapping the gold and mako sword onto his back.  
"Right."  
"Let's go home, okay?" she asked. He nodded and they turned from the battle area. The sky had brightened to the dull grey hue right before dawn. Remains of the clouds which had hung over the field still clung to the horizon like distant nightmares departing. Cloud suddenly felt Tifa leaning heavily against him, then she fell. Cloud caught her in his arms and shook her.  
"Tifa!"  
Her eyes were closed but she was breathing. Her cheeks were patches of rosy flames; the rest of her skin was pale. It had been too much for her after all.  
"Of course it was too much for her–she is, after all, only mortal."  
Cloud froze, one arm around Tifa and one hand on the handle of his sword.  
"You're still alive?"


	25. Fates and Fortunes

"I will not be taken out so easily."  
"I see."  
He faced his clone. They stayed that way for what seemed like hours, each holding their huge-bladed swords. Cloud lay Tifa down on a clear area of ground and walked up to Damien. They stood several feet apart from each other, glaring for even longer than the first time. Damien moved.  
Cloud's eyes flashed and a yellow flare of power encircled him. He drew his sword back and lunged at Damien, swinging it with all of his force. The blade cut deep. He did this over and over, more times than he could keep count of. All of a sudden, a huge white beam of energy swallowed Damien and made blood fly. Cloud doubled over, his chest plate denting severely and one shoulder guard completely shattering to pieces. Blood poured from the fresh wounds and he looked up at his clone, who had the same exact injuries.  
"That's...new..." Damien grunted, getting to his feet again.  
"Ultimate End...like it...?" Cloud gasped shallowly, hoping he could outlast the stupid clone that seemed to have no life limit.  
"Didn't...quite work as expected..."  
"You're complaining...?"  
"No...I still have to kill you..."  
"My thoughts exactly..."  
They dove for each other at the same time. The swords flew, striking loudly in mid-leap. The synthesized Ultima Sword cracked loudly, then shattered. The crystal fragments clattered to the dirt and Damien fell back, shaking his head.  
"This can't be happening!"  
He ran for Cloud again, drawing a fist back. He had regressed to animalistic tactics. Cloud was a mercenary–he knew them all. When Damien crouched Cloud planted his feet and swung his Ultimate Sacrifice over his head, bringing it down onto Damien's open shoulder. There was a sharp crack. Cloud felt his right arm go numb; he couldn't control it anymore–so he forced it. Swinging the sword around, he pushed Damien up and away, cutting him across the bridge of his nose. The identical mark ensued. Cloud drew the mako crystal blade behind him, waiting for the opening.  
Damien wasted no time giving it to him. Incredibly angered by this turn of events, he lunged for the other boy blindly. Cloud rammed the sword up high and there was a sound: a sick, terrifying noise. They stayed in this final position for seconds, minutes, hours...so it seemed. Then Damien fell for the last time. His green eyes flashed, then dulled and glassed over instantly. Mako blood poured from the gaping wound in his chest, creating a pool in the dirt beneath him. The final victor turned slowly, placing his sword on his back.  
"It's over," Cloud Strife said.

Tifa Lockheart slowly opened her eyes. Her hair hung untidily in her face and she tried to brush it back. She saw the jewelry on her arms and looked around. Cloud was carrying her gently perched over one strong shoulder, his face tight and drawn, his body trembling ceaselessly beneath the golden armor.  
"Cloud...?"  
Speaking made her dizzy but she didn't care. He looked over his shoulder at the sound of her voice.  
"Tifa, you're awake."  
"Yeah," she said, sliding off his shoulder. He stopped walking and held her with one arm. She touched his cheek worriedly.  
"I'm fine," he seemed to read her thoughts.  
"But you look like something's..."  
"Nah. Let's just keep going."  
But when he walked he limped severely. Tifa stopped and held him back by the arm.  
"Cloud, what's–?"  
He was clenching his teeth. "It's nothing, I said."  
This wasn't from anger; Tifa automatically sensed that. She stood in front of him and looked him over.  
"Cloud!" she screamed.

He was covered in cuts and bruises from his nose to his legs–his right shoulder looked extremely bashed and swollen. His armor was nonexistent from collarbone to abdomen: it was all one gaping, bloody hole. The red liquid slid down his torso and stained his blue uniform, leaving splotches on the ground, probably for miles–they were far from the area where they had fought Damien.  
"Did I forget to mention I killed Damien?" Cloud asked with a sort of half-smile.  
"You WHAT!"  
"Well...kill or be killed–take your pick."  
"But how...? How...!"  
"Come on, Tifa. You've got to have more faith in me than that."  
He started to walk. Something finally caught up with him because he abruptly groaned and doubled over. Blood spilled everywhere. Tifa ran to his side and put her arms around him.  
"Stop, Cloud. Please?"  
"We're almost there..." he tried.  
"NO! Cloud, you can't continue like this! You have to let me–"  
"Tifa..." he groaned. His knees buckled and he collapsed. She let out a little scream and held him up quickly. His eyes were closed–he was breathing heavily; gulping in ragged gasps. Not knowing what else to do, she set him down in the grass and looked at him worriedly.  
"Cloud, I...I don't know what to do–"  
He put a finger to her lips and her eyes widened, tears gathering at the corners.  
"Sometimes...you don't know when to give up..."  
"Cloud," she tried again, "your wounds are fatal, and if we don't do something..."  
"I have...welcomed death from the beginning..." he smiled, opening his eyes. "To chase ones...such as Sephiroth and Damien...you have to be ready to–"  
"Stop it! I don't want to hear anymore of that!" she cried.  
"So, what if I told you...how beautiful you are instead...?"  
She shook her head: "I can't..."  
"Live without me?"  
She blushed, but still retorted indignantly. "You're full of it, you know that?"  
He laughed; it was short and ended in a moan of pain. "Well...that's how I felt...when this was you..."  
The tears began to coarse down her cheeks: "You can't leave me now...!"  
His chest hitched, and another pained sound escaped him.  
"Tifa..."  
"I won't let you die! I won't!"  
"Listen to me...please..."  
"No..." she continued shaking her head, but bit her lip.  
Cloud let his hand roam over her face and slide into her hair. He brushed a few of the strands off her shoulder, trailing his fingers down her arm and finally grasping her hand weakly in his own.  
"I want you...to do me a favor..." he pulled her hand slowly to his chest and lay it above the damageatop his heart.  
"What is it?" she whispered.  
"Tifa...give me a little taste of heaven...before I go to hell..."  
She whimpered, a sob ripping from her throat. Cloud grabbed her chin gently in the other hand, wincing again as he did so; his broken arm was not liking this treatment. He turned her face back to his and stared into her eyes adorned with tears. He smiled. Tifa shook her head and touched the hand on her face. Slowly she leaned down, her hair falling like a curtain and blocking out the brightening dawn light. She saw his blue mako eyes–the mark of a SOLDIER–glowing up at her. No matter what anyone said, she would always see love in those eyes.  
She kissed him. His tongue darted past her lips and licked along the curve of her mouth, making her heart race. She could taste him–sweet and gentle as they parted and met again. She slid her tongue over his, feeling him let out a weak moan. Slowly, very slowly, they pulled away just so their noses still brushed. He let his head fall back, a smile on his lips, his eyes still closed. Tifa sobbed again, shaking her head.  
"Cloud...? Cloud, no!"  
His chest hitched again. He drew in one last, shaky breath and opened his eyes just enough so she could look into them again.  
"I love you."  
He spoke clearly, not a trace of pain hanging in his words. Then his head tilted to one side and there was nothing.

He was dead.  
Tifa let her own head fall to the hand which still held hers. Even when she closed her eyes the tears continued to pour down her cheeks; she still continued to see his blank stare. She stayed like this for a long while.  
'So,' she thought to herself. 'This is what Cait Sith's fortune meant.' Her eyes slowly opened and rose to the horizon, which was no longer a hazy gray but a brilliant orange. Pink clouds hung near the earth: 'Death cannot stop true love, only delay it for a time.'  
"I love you, Cloud Strife," Tifa Lockheart whispered.


End file.
